First and foremost, I have something to admit: I don’t really smoke. I’m probably the least appropriate person to take on this assignment. But come to think of it, maybe that makes me the most appropriate person to do some digging. Because if I’m confused by Ohio’s ever-evolving weed laws — someone who’s basically been stone-cold sober since D.A.R.E. came to my suburban Cincinnati classroom — I can’t be the only one.
I may not partake in much pot, but I have been working as an Ohio journalist since 2013. The people have spoken, but the powers that be are still figuring out how to translate that into policy. What started as a grassroots (pun fully intended) victory for recreational pot advocates has turned into a slow-motion, not-so-fun game of legislative hot potato — with the Ohio Statehouse (whether intentionally or not) threatening a buzzkill with changes that could potentially limit the number of plants that can be grown at home, drop legal THC levels and create requirements about how marijuana is transported, to name a few.
In this issue, we’re clearing the air: how did we get here? What does the law really say? What do lawmakers want to change? Who wins? Who loses? And when could the dust actually settle?
Whether you’re a regular toker, a curious observer or someone who’s still not entirely sure how much a gram even is (cough, cough: me!), welcome to The Weed Issue.
The herb-story
April 20, 2025 will mark 530 days since recreational marijuana was legalized in Ohio, but the root of reality is that the Buckeye State still has no idea what legalized pot will look like in the long-term.
As cannabis-inspired celebrations take place on that Sunday in mid-April, there probably won’t be a lot of reviewing of the Ohio Revised Code. Still, we have to acknowledge for thousands of Ohioans in recent years, excitement about any unofficial holiday has been eclipsed by very serious legal implications of marijuana use.
When you research green in Ohio, there are gray areas — gray areas that persist today.
This year is actually the 50th anniversary of marijuana being decriminalized in Ohio. That’s not a misprint — on August 22, 1975, then-Gov. James Rhodes joined the governors of California, Colorado, Maine and Alaska in reducing the severity of penalties for cannabis possession.
So then why were there at least 7,500 marijuana-related arrests as recently as two years ago?
Perhaps the biggest reason is that “decriminalization” is somewhat of a misnomer. In 1975, Ohio only really decriminalized possession of less than 100 grams of marijuana. (For some perspective, one gram is enough cannabis for one or two smaller joints. At one dispensary, we found just under three grams selling for $25.) To be clear, although marijuana was said to be decriminalized 50 years ago, no amount of pot was really legal. Possessing less than 100 grams of marijuana was still classified as a minor misdemeanor. While there was no jail time, no fines over $150 and no addition to your criminal record (unless it was repeated), you could still end up in handcuffs by selling larger amounts or using in public.
Today, under Ohio’s new law, possessing up to 70 grams (2.5 ounces) of cannabis is legal. However, according to NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, a social welfare organization based in Washington, D.C., possessing between 70 and 100 grams can still result in a misdemeanor with a fine of $150. Possessing between 100 grams and 200 grams can result in a misdemeanor, 30-day incarceration and a $250 fine. Once you’re beyond 200 grams, we’re talking about felonies – and a lot more time behind bars.
I hate to throw more numbers at you, but we can’t ignore medical marijuana. If you have a medical marijuana card, generally speaking, you can legally possess up to 226.8 grams of pot.
Blurred (state) lines
Here’s where that buzzkill might really come in. On top of all the nuances of the state weed laws, local jurisdictions in Ohio have the authority to regulate or prohibit recreational marijuana businesses within their boundaries (that doesn’t include possession or cultivation, but it can still add a whole mess of confusion). Remember, marijuana remains illegal in the eyes of the federal government.
“I sometimes joke that this keeps me a job,” said Professor Douglas Berman, the executive director of the Drug Enforcement and Policy Center, housed in the Moritz College of Law at the Ohio State University. He also studied law at Harvard University and Princeton University. “This is just incredibly complicated to have federal law stacked on top of state law [and] local issues. [For instance,] there’s a shopping center owner who doesn’t know whether or not their local county will allow a dispensary, so can they sell to somebody who wants to open a dispensary there? Are they going to get a license? That has all sorts of echo effects.”
Federal law prohibits the transportation of marijuana across state lines – even between states where it is legal – because it remains illegal federally. That’s important for the Tri-State area since that means that — even if Kentucky or Indiana were to legalize recreational marijuana (which they haven’t) — you couldn’t transport it (legally) there.
“I know every day people drive to Michigan to obtain marijuana because it’s cheaper and it has a lower tax,” said Sen. Stephen Huffman, a state legislator who has been on the front line of updating Ohio’s cannabis law. “The reason we’re at where we’re at and doing what we’re doing is the absolute failure of the federal government. [Marijuana] is up there with methamphetamine and heroin. So there’s no medical purpose.”
The federal government breaks down drugs into “schedules.” Schedule 1 drugs are considered by the federal government to have no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse — examples include marijuana and heroin. Schedule 2 drugs also have a high potential for abuse, but they’re recognized as having legitimate medical uses — like oxycodone, adderall and fentanyl. This spans to schedule 5, which covers over-the-counter cough medicine.
“Once they change [marijuana] to a schedule 2, which first the Trump administration thought they would, then the thought was the Biden administration [would], but it hasn’t [happened],” said Sen. Huffman. “A place like The Ohio State University, Nationwide Children’s Hospital or Cleveland Clinic can’t do any medical research to prove that there’s value to it, and so along with being a schedule one drug, it’s illegal to have. The federal government just says, ‘Hey, we’re not going to do anything. We’re just going to turn our back.’”
CityBeat asked Senator Huffman if he’d go as far as recommending federal comprehensive cannabis reform.
“I wouldn’t disagree with that,” Huffman, a Republican, said. “I think the very first step is moving it to a schedule 2 drug so they can do medical research. [Also, so] we can have a banking system. All these dispensaries are cash businesses because they can’t use credit cards. It’s not uncommon that people will walk into the Ohio Department of Taxation with literally a suitcase, with a quarter of a million dollars, to pay their taxes or their license fee, which is absolutely ridiculous. That’s again the failure of the federal government to change their regulations.”
However, Senator Huffman acknowledges federal involvement would pose its own challenges because – whether they’re succeeding or not — numerous states are running their own programs.
“The cat’s out of the bag,” he said. “There are 20 or 25 [states] with recreational programs and 35 or 40 [states] with medical. But I think it would certainly help if the federal government provided some guidelines for everybody to travel across state lines.”
Weed the people
If the people have spoken, why are lawmakers still tinkering with the details? It starts with legal jargon that most Ohioans probably didn’t think twice about.
In 2015, Ohio voters said “no” to a constitutional amendment that would’ve legalized both medical and recreational marijuana in Ohio. That term “constitutional amendment” is important: this would’ve changed the state’s constitution. If there was a desire to change the law again later, Ohio voters would’ve needed to return to the polls. It would’ve been “hands off” for the legislature.
In 2023, Ohio voters said “yes” to a citizen-initiated statute (not a constitutional amendment) that legalized recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older. (Separately, Ohio legalized medical marijuana in 2016.) The statute is still considered part of the law, but it differs in its level of permanence.
So, yes, lawmakers can make changes. But they likely are considering that doing so could lead to major backlash.
My goal when taking on this assignment was to give you a very specific outline of Ohio law. But as I dug deeper, I realized the long and short of it is — we can’t, not really. That’s because, up until (and after) my deadline, hearings were still being scheduled and pieces of legislation were being adjusted.
We can, however, give you a sense of the conversation. These are two bills that could change the law in Ohio (and it’s important to remember, neither of these bills are law):
Senate Bill 56: Passed by the Ohio Senate in February, this bill proposes several major changes to the law. It:
- Reduces home cultivation rights to six plants per household
- Reduces allowable THC (the primary psychoactive compound found in the cannabis plant) levels in cannabis products to 70%
- Caps the number of dispensaries allowed to operate in Ohio at 350 (the Ohio Cannabis Coalition (OHCANN) told CityBeat there are currently 139)
House Bill 160: Introduced in the Ohio House, this bill offers what some consider a more moderate approach with fewer changes to the existing law. It:
- Allows adults to grow up to six plants per person (12 per household)
- Reduces allowable THC levels in cannabis products to 70% (similar to SB56)
- Caps the number of dispensaries allowed to operate in Ohio at 350 (similar to SB56)
Issue 2: For comparison, here’s what Ohioans approved in 2023 (which, again, can legally be changed):
- Allows adults to grow up to six plants per person (12 per household)
- Delegates responsibility for setting THC content limits to the Division of Cannabis Control but specifies that such limits should not be less than 90% content for extracts
- Does not cap license number (but the Division of Cannabis Control can review the number of licenses on a biannual basis)
A public affair
The Ohio Statehouse’s Republican supermajority is quick to say the legislative rewriting is largely about protecting Ohioans. CityBeat asked Senator Huffman, Senate Bill 56’s main sponsor, why the current law doesn’t do enough. He answered with two words: “Public consumption.”
“You can walk down the street. You can sit at a ball game and smoke marijuana next to a 10-year-old child,” Huffman said. “Senate Bill 56 would not allow consumption [or] smoking of marijuana in a moving vehicle. It also doesn’t allow growing marijuana in a daycare facility, because a lot of people use their house as a daycare facility.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Senator William DeMora, a Democrat, told us in response. “Right now, marijuana is treated like cigarettes. You can’t smoke marijuana anywhere. You can’t smoke a cigarette, so you can’t smoke marijuana in a stadium, because you can’t smoke a cigarette in a stadium except in a designated spot outside. […] For him to say, well, I don’t want to smell marijuana as I walk down the street, well, sorry, that’s just tough shit, because it’s going to happen.”
We sought clarity on this issue from Professor Berman.
“My understanding is that [public consumption] is currently illegal unless — and I think this is part of where this gets complicated — if a private property owner […] wants to allow it. In my sense, the big concern — and I think this is not a full-hearted concern — is that when I walk down a street downtown, if there is a restaurant, it’s private property, and if they choose to allow people to smoke on their private patio, that’s not technically public consumption.”
Equity and expungement
Both Senate Bill 56 and House Bill 160 include rules about transporting marijuana in vehicles. Under these proposals, cannabis must be kept in its original, unopened packaging or stored in the trunk. If the vehicle doesn’t have a trunk, it must be placed behind the last upright seat or somewhere not easily accessible to the driver, aiming to promote safety and prevent consumption while driving.
This is raising concerns about fairness for various commuters (for instance, those without vehicles) among legal experts who are closely monitoring the legislation. Professor Berman and his team have created a fluid, online resource that helps people all over the country keep up with the legal battle.
“The more rules, restrictions and cost that you put on accessing and using these products, the more you shut people out for having equitable access to this right,” said Professor Berman.
“Columbus police […] already told me they are not going to stop somebody on the sidewalk walking down the street because they might be smoking a joint as opposed to a cigarette,” Senator DeMora said. “They’re not going to stop and make the distinction. They’re not going to stop people from smoking on the front porch of their house or giving their neighbor a marijuana cigarette that they go in the backyard. That stuff’s not going to happen. What is going to happen is in other places, selectively, law enforcement will use this to harass people [who] aren’t from that area, who might not look like the people in the general population of that area. Because now they can say, ‘Well, I thought you had a marijuana cigarette.’”
In order to understand the very real way criminalization has affected Ohioans, CityBeat pulled data from the NORML. In 2023, the year that Ohio voters approved recreational marijuana, there were still approximately 7,500 marijuana-related arrests (possession and sales) in the state. NORML pointed out that arrest data is provided to the FBI on an annual basis. NORML said, in most instances, the data provided is incomplete and underreports the total number of actual marijuana-related arrests. Why? They say not all participating law enforcement agencies provide data in a timely fashion.
Analysis conducted by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) shows that, due to racial profiling and bias in marijuana enforcement, Black people in Ohio are more than three times more likely than white people to be arrested for marijuana possession, despite similar usage rates. This disparity has not improved over the last decade, and in fact, disparities have actually gotten worse in most states.
Both Ohio Senate Bill 56 and House Bill 160 propose mechanisms for expunging certain marijuana possession convictions. Specifically, individuals convicted before the bills’ effective dates for possessing amounts that are now legal could apply for expungement. However, applicants would need to submit evidence of their conviction and its eligibility under the new legal thresholds. The court would then schedule a hearing, notify the prosecutor and consider any objections before deciding on expungement. A notable difference between the bills is the associated fee — something upsetting to many advocates: House Bill 160 specifies a $50 filing fee. Senate Bill 56 does not mention a fee.
I call it like I smoke it
Professor Berman said the legalization of medical marijuana in Ohio serves as a reminder that advocates can have a voice.
“We started seeing in the evolution of Ohio’s medical marijuana laws that when something comes up that really ends up seeming very goofy and counterproductive to everybody’s interests, the regulators [and] sometimes the lawmakers will make adjustments,” he said. “If you pass a law that says you have to have [marijuana] always locked in your trunk, and then a whole bunch of people start getting pulled over because they don’t have a trunk … you may not get a lot of sympathy right away, but over time, they’ll see they’re really foolish rules.”
Professor Berman said the cannabis industry has the ability to speak for consumers in ways that can help because — if the rules are discouraging — people will stop coming to the dispensaries. In Ohio, the major voice is the OHCANN, a group that vouches for the interests of marijuana businesses. The group’s leaders — representing some 60 percent of the market — told CityBeat they were relieved to see a proposed marijuana tax hike removed from the state budget in February.
“Doubling a tax on a new industry that isn’t even a whole year into adult-use sales was very concerning for us,” said Adrienne Robbins, Deputy Director of OHCANN. “We want to make sure Ohioans have access to affordable, regulated, tested products.”
Robbins said her team focuses on the importance of keeping products affordable and accessible. Robbins also addressed THC potency caps introduced in earlier legislation, noting the coalition’s preference for allowing the Division of Cannabis Control to make those decisions.
“We think it’s a purity argument over potency,” she said. “We trust that regulators know what’s right for this industry. [For instance], the intoxicating hemp market is something that our members are very concerned about.”
Our next big clue for how Ohio will respond to and legislate marijuana might come in Ohio’s 2026 governor’s race. Early frontrunners are Republicans Vivek Ramaswamy and Attorney General Dave Yost and Democrat Dr. Amy Acton. Ramaswamy has expressed support for states’ rights on marijuana and criticized federal overreach.
“Ramaswamy has expressed support for marijuana legalization,” Professor Berman said. “And he’s expressed that kind of anti-regulatory attitude across a variety of fronts. Might he come in and say, you know, all these rules and restrictions about where you can buy the product and how much you can get … let’s do away with that stuff.”
Yost supports medical use but has been cautious of full legalization. Acton hasn’t detailed a cannabis stance but is expected to take a public health-driven approach.
Long road in the weeds
So where does all of this leave us? Likely with a long road in the weeds — but with a clear view of how far we’ve come. At the federal level, President Donald Trump has expressed support for marijuana policy reform, marking a shift from his earlier positions. Last September, Trump endorsed Florida’s Amendment 3, a ballot measure to legalize recreational marijuana for adults over 21. But it did not pass — and since then, Trump has not outlined any specific plans to promote federal cannabis reform.
In Ohio, the future of SB56 is unknown and one legislator said HB160 could be debated until at least June. Professor Berman acknowledged that — in theory — the Ohio legislature could be toying with marijuana law for a very, very long time.
“You know, if somebody asks if we’ll legislate alcohol forever, legislate firearms forever or legislate taxes forever, the answer is probably yes,” he said. “But then, sometimes there are very big changes and sometimes it’s just gonna be tinkering.”
Ohioans lit the spark, but the full picture’s still coming into focus. As the smoke clears and the rules settle in, we’ll be watching closely to see how – and if – it continues to roll out across the state.
This article appears in Apr 16-29, 2025.