If enacted, S.B. 56 would be the first time Ohio’s government tinkered with the recreational framework enacted in Issue 2, which Ohio voters approved with 57% of the vote in November 2023.
Among other things, the voter-approved statute legalized recreational marijuana sales; set a 10% excise tax on recreational sales; created a tax distribution plan that kicks money back to local governments and created a social equity and jobs program; and allowed for adults to grow six marijuana plants per person capped at 12 per household.
Pending legislation
As introduced, S.B. 56 contains an extensive list of changes to law, including:
- Reducing the THC-extract potency from 90% to 70%;
- Abolishing Issue 2’s social equity and jobs program;
- Reducing home-grow marijuana limits from 12 to six per household;
- Prohibiting adult-to-adult transfer of homegrown or legally-purchased marijuana;
- Requiring legally purchased marijuana be stored in its original container;
- Prohibiting possession of marijuana that was legally purchased from other states;
- Specifying that Ohioans may smoke or vape marijuana “only in a private residence;”
- Prohibiting marketing toward children;
- Repealing protections Issue 2 gave adult marijuana consumers from certain actions by employers, courts or health care providers;
- Excluding Ohioans fired due to marijuana consumption from state unemployment benefits.
- Limiting the transport of legally purchased marijuana in cars by requiring that its original packaging be unopened and that the marijuana, along with any paraphernalia, be contained in the trunk of a car.
The bill initially looked to raise sales taxes on recreational cannabis from 10% to 15% and direct all recreational tax revenue to the state’s general fund.
However, amendments approved Tuesday took away all mention of a tax increase within S.B. 56, following Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s proposal to double the recreational tax rate within the state budget and put the money toward criminal justice and health initiatives.
“The governor obviously put out his own marker on what we’re going to do as far as funding,” Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon, told reporters Wednesday. “Rather than dealing with that in a separate bill, it makes more sense having one bill discussing that, so I anticipate those changes to be discussed more fully in the operating budget.”
Other amendments to S.B. 56 approved Tuesday include:
- Requiring certain advertisements to be approved by the state before airing;
- Prohibiting cannabis advertisements within 500 feet of certain buildings like churches and schools;
- Prohibiting dispensaries within one mile of one another;
- Prohibiting dispensaries from offering free products or samples.
The sides
In a January interview with this news outlet, Huffman framed S.B. 56 as a way of reigning in Ohio’s recreational marijuana industry to protect children and the public, but added, “...in no way does it get away (from) what the people have voted for.”
Ensuing committee hearings have brought proponents and opponents alike to the fore.
On Tuesday, national advocacy organization the Marijuana Policy Project urged senators to reject S.B. 56 entirely. The organization argued the bill’s diversions from Issue 2 criminalizes certain harmless conduct, including sharing cannabis or smoking in one’s own yard.
“(The bill’s) overwhelming theme is creating an air of suspicion and re-criminalization that ensnares cannabis consumers for innocuous conduct that endangers no one, while restricting the products they can use, raising taxes, and stripping away their rights and funding from hard-hit communities,” said Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies for the project.
However, the bill found support among the Ohio Chamber of Commerce and Ohio’s county prosecutors, the latter of which argued that S.B. 56’s restrictions on transporting marijuana would inevitably create safer Ohio roadways.
“Ensuring that motorists do not have access to intoxicating substances while driving is critical to highway safety,” Steve Barnett, Carroll County prosecuting attorney, said on behalf of the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association. “We can all agree that we should seek to deter and to punish impaired driving. Regulating the transport of marijuana is critical to that.”
The Ohio Municipal League, which advocates on behalf of hundreds local governments across the state, raised concerns its members have with DeWine’s plan, and S.B. 56’s previous plan, to completely remove tax kickbacks to local governments.
“We urge the Legislature to maintain funding for communities that host marijuana facilities so these municipalities can prioritize where the need is greatest in their community and work to make the greatest impact,” said Kent Scarrett.
McColley, who was amendable to keeping some tax kickbacks to local governments, told reporters Wednesday that he expects the Senate to “probably” finalize S.B. 56 next week with some tweaks.
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Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
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