Ohio GOP Lawmakers Introduce Bill To Raise Marijuana Tax, Restrict Home Grow And Eliminate Social Equity Funding

Ohio Republican lawmakers are reviving an effort to considerably alter the state’s voter-approved marijuana legalization legislation—partially by elevating the tax on hashish merchandise, halving the variety of vegetation adults may develop and eliminating sure social fairness provisions.

Whereas GOP management has typically pledged that they won’t search to repeal the marijuana legislation altogether, a newly filed invoice from Sen. Steve Huffman (R)—which the Senate president signaled he helps—would make main adjustments that considerably depart from the provisions of the initiative that voters strongly authorized in 2023.

Among the many proposed revisions, the invoice would enhance the excise tax on marijuana from 10 % to fifteen %. And reasonably than have income allotted to particular areas supporting social fairness and jobs packages, native governments that allow marijuana companies, schooling and substance misuse initiatives and extra, all income would as an alternative go to the state basic fund.

Senate President Rob McColley (R) informed The Columbus Dispatch that legislators intend to debate doable disbursements of that income this session, however he mentioned he’s aligned with the invoice sponsor on the concept of accelerating the tax fee for hashish.

“There’s an terrible lot of societal prices which might be going to must be borne by the legalization of marijuana,” he said.

Beneath Huffman’s bill, adults would solely have the ability to develop as much as six vegetation, reasonably than 12, for private use. It will additionally lower the THC content material cap from 90 % to 70 %.

Additional, the proposal would restrict the variety of dispensaries to 350, whereas requiring all licensed retailers to serve each adult-use shoppers and medical hashish sufferers. The state Division of Hashish Management (DCC) would additionally now not be required to determine guidelines permitting for marijuana deliveries and on-line purchases.

GOP lawmakers thought of a wide range of potential amendments to the marijuana legislation within the weeks after voters handed the poll initiative, and this newest try is more likely to see related pushback.

Sen. Invoice DeMora (D) said throughout a committee listening to on Wednesday that the proposal successfully quantities to legislators telling voters: “Screw you, you don’t know what you’re speaking about. You handed it with an awesome majority within the state, however we all know higher than they did what they have been voting on.”

Huffman, the invoice sponsor, mentioned the laws shouldn’t be meant to “cast off the poll initiative.”

“It’s to work across the edges to make it higher,” he said.

Sure Democrats have indicated a willingness to finesse the hashish legislation, however they are saying the proposed adjustments to provisions associated to points reminiscent of house cultivation are a bridge too far. Sen. Casey Weinstein (D) mentioned there’s “undoubtedly bipartisan assist for protections in advertising to maintain youngsters secure and wise limitations on the place you need to use hashish,” however not for undermining basic elements of what voters authorized.

The invoice introduction comes as Ohio’s GOP Home speaker appears to have modified his tune on the state’s marijuana legislation, strolling again his beforehand acknowledged plan to undermine provisions of the voter-approved initiative reminiscent of house cultivation rights.

Conflicts between Senate and Home Republican management close to the tip of the final session performed a key position in stalling modification proposals. It’s unclear if the chambers will have the ability to attain consensus this spherical, particularly because the market continues to evolve and shoppers undertake to the legislation.

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Speaker Matt Huffman (R), who beforehand served as Senate president, mentioned that whereas he continues to oppose the reform measure voters handed, he doesn’t consider anybody within the legislature “realistically is suggesting that we’re going to repeal the legalization of marijuana.”

“I’m not for it. I wasn’t for the casinos coming to Ohio, both. However there’s a number of stuff that’s a part of the Structure and the legislation which might be there that I don’t like,” he mentioned.

To that finish, the speaker indicated he’s now not all in favour of pursuing plans to broadly undermine the hashish legislation, regardless of having backed laws as a Senate chief final session that might have decreased allowable THC ranges in state-legal hashish merchandise, diminished the variety of vegetation that adults may develop at house and elevated prices for shoppers at dispensaries.

Initially, adjustments backed by Huffman final yr would have eradicated house cultivation rights solely for Ohio adults and criminalized all hashish obtained wherever apart from a state-licensed retailer.

In the meantime, as 2024 got here to a detailed with the brand new marijuana legalization legislation in impact, Ohio officers introduced the state noticed adult-use hashish gross sales exceed $242 million.

Because the 2025 session will get underway, lawmakers are additionally anticipated to think about key adjustments to the state’s hemp legal guidelines. In November, legislators took testimony on a proposal that might ban intoxicating hemp merchandise within the state. Huffman—the sponsor of the marijuana revision invoice and never the Home speaker—launched that proposal after Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) known as on lawmakers to control or ban delta-8 THC merchandise.

Individually, regardless of legalization of adult-use hashish in Ohio, the U.S. Division of Veterans Affairs’s (VA) Cincinnati well being middle issued a reminder final summer season that authorities medical doctors are nonetheless prohibited from recommending medical hashish to veterans—a minimum of so long as it stays a Schedule I managed substance below federal legislation.

Picture courtesy of Philip Steffan.