Top Ohio Republican lawmakers say plans are still in the works to amend the state’s marijuana legalization law, with the Senate president setting a June target as regulators work to develop rules and launch an adult-use market.
It remains unclear what that future cannabis legislation will look like, but leadership has discussed addressing issues such as tax revenue distribution, scaling back home cultivation rules and restricting public smoking.
“I am—I would not say optimistic—but I am reasonably hopeful, if you need words, that we can get something done by June,” Senate President Matt Huffman (R), whose chamber has already passed legislation to amend the voter-approved legalization policy, told WCMH-TV.
“With greater access to marijuana, there will be more visits to poison control centers,” he said, adding that it’s “really important” that lawmakers allocate tax dollars to those centers as part of any amendment package.
The senator additionally said he thinks “what’s most pressing is people smoking marijuana when they’re walking down the street.”
Gov. Mike DeWine (R) has previously pressed the legislature to enact changes to expedite recreational marijuana sales, despite his personal opposition to the ballot initiative that voters passed in November. But he’s indicated that his more immediate concern is regulating the sale of intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoids such as delta-8 THC.
“This is time for the legislature to move,” the governor, who also raised the issue during his State of the State address earlier this month, said. “We can’t do it ourselves.”
He also said he’s “not going to get into that” when asked about disagreements within Republican leadership with respect to revising the state’s marijuana law.
Hellbound and Down 