Latest news with #PaulArmentano
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Marijuana backers criticize Ohio bills attempting to change state law
Stock photo from Getty Images. Marijuana advocates called bills to change Ohio's weed laws 'a slap in the face' to voters. The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws hosted a webinar last week about two bills that are trying to change Ohio's marijuana laws. 'Whether one believes that cannabis ought to be legal or not is almost a secondary issue,' said NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano. 'The primary issue ought to be that elections have consequences, and the results of elections should matter.' Ohioans voted to legalize recreational marijuana in 2023 by passing a citizen-initiated law, meaning Ohio lawmakers can change the law. Marijuana sales started in August 2024 and the state's total recreational marijuana sales were $376,482,070 as of Saturday, according to the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Cannabis Control. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX 'Ohio looks like it has been rolling along very smoothly, and implementation has been going well,' said NORML Political Director Morgan Fox. 'There have been no major complaints from Ohioans, and it's premature for the legislature to try to interfere with it.' There are bills in both chambers trying to rewrite Ohio's marijuana laws — Senate Bill 56 and House Bill 160. 'It's not as if this pushback is coming because there have been negative or adverse consequences of Issue Two being implemented,' Armentano said. 'The law is working just fine, and Ohioans are happy with it. Lawmakers are trying to meddle with it and act as if there are issues with the law, when in fact, we're seeing the laws playing out the way voters intended.' These bills would be dangerous for cannabis users in Ohio, said Cat Packer, director of drug markets and legal regulation at Drug Policy Alliance. 'There are so many ways that if you are a cannabis consumer in Ohio, with either of these bills passed, you should consider that the law will consider you a criminal,' she said. S.B. 56 would cut the number of Ohio's home grow plants in half from 12 plants down to six, reduce the THC levels in adult-use marijuana extracts from a maximum of 90% down to a maximum of 70%, and require marijuana can only be used in a private residence. THC potency caps are a solution in search of a problem, Armentano said. 'Voters, by and large, don't like potency caps for cannabis,' he said. 'If we simply remove these products from the market, we're not going to get rid of the demand, but what we're going to do is drive the production of these products to the unregulated market.' S.B. 56 does allow someone to apply to the sentencing court to have their record expunged, but they would have to pay a $50 filing fee. The bill would require marijuana to only be transported in the trunk of a car when traveling and would limit the number of active dispensaries to 350. The Ohio Senate passed S.B. 56 last month, which would ban Ohioans from using marijuana that is not either from a licensed Ohio dispensary or cultivated at a consumer's home — meaning it would be illegal for Ohioans to drive up to Michigan to buy marijuana and bring it back over state lines. The bill has yet to have a hearing in the House. 'If you were to pass a joint or share your home grown cannabis, or share your cannabis with your spouse or your roommate, you would be a criminal again,' said Karen O'Keefe, director of state policies at Marijuana Policy Project. House Bill 160 would keep home grow and tax levels the same, but reduce THC levels and redirect most of the tax revenue to the state's general fund. The current tax revenue is divided up in several ways — 36% to the cannabis social equity and jobs fund, 36% to the host community cannabis fund, 25% to the substance abuse and addiction fund and 3% to the Division of Cannabis Control and Tax Commissioner Fund. 'My concern is we wouldn't be dedicating those monies where voters decided that the money should go,' Packer said. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine's budget proposal would increase the tax on marijuana from 10% to 20%. The Ohio House is currently working on the budget, which is due July 1. Follow Capital Journal Reporter Megan Henry on Bluesky. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Where do the two Virginias stand on marijuana legalization?
GHENT, WV (WVNS) – Over the past 30 years, it has become increasingly easier for folks to legally get their hands on marijuana. College Baseball takes center field as some teams swing at Opening Day In 1996, California became the first state to legalize the use of medical marijuana. However, it wouldn't be until 2012, when Colorado and Washington would break barriers by legalizing the recreational use of marijuana. Since then, 24 states plus Washington D.C. have legalized the adult use and possession of marijuana. Meanwhile, 39 states plus D.C. have legalized the medical use of marijuana. Paul Armentano is the deputy director for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or as some call it – NORML. He said that although West Virginia is one of the 39, it is still extremely difficult for someone to get access to medical marijuana. 'Unless a person is a qualified medical patient and registered with West Virginia's Medical cannabis access program. In that instance, those individuals can legally possess certain marijuana products. If a person is not a state qualified patient, it is illegal in the state of West Virginia for them to possess any marijuana whatsoever,' said Armentano. To get qualified, West Virginians must have a recommendation from their physician stating that they have a condition that requires the treatment of a marijuana product. If someone were to be caught in illegal possession of marijuana in the Mountain State, they would be sentenced up to 6 months of jail time and as much as a $1,000 fine. Virginia is different in some ways. They are one of the 24 states who permit the adult use and possession of weed. Just like West Virginia, there are restrictions that severely restrict folks from getting their fix – there are no state licensed stores that are allowed to sell weed. 'In Virginia right now, individuals have the option of potentially growing their own small amounts of marijuana, or they have the option of obtaining marijuana from the unregulated market, or they can drive across the border to states like Maryland and other states within the mid-Atlantic region that do regulate the sale of marijuana products,' added Armentano. Armentano told 59News this method of thinking is potentially dangerous, as it promotes the street sale of weed. Maryland and Ohio are two states who are further along in their legalization of weed and its accessibility. Lawmakers want to call the tallest point in West Virginia, Spruce Knob, 'Trump Mountain' 'Right now, there is not a single example of a single state in this country that has moved forward with legalization, that has ever rolled back or repealed their marijuana legalization policies. That's evidence that these policies are working the way voters and politicians envisioned and that they are preferable policies to those of cannabis criminalization,' stated Armentano. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
