Sentencing Policy Study Committee to examine Hoosier marijuana laws!

Things are moving in the Hoosier State! On April 18, the Indiana Senate passed Sen. Karen Tallian’s (D-Ogden Dunes) marijuana policy reform study resolution, S.R. 70, by voice vote. S.R. 70 urged the Legislative Council to direct the Sentencing Policy Study Committee to study the effects of potential changes to Indiana’s marijuana laws. The urging was successful, as the first committee session on marijuana has been scheduled! The Sentencing Policy Study Committee will be meeting on July 28 at 1:00 p.m. at the Statehouse in Indianapolis to discuss reforming Indiana’s marijuana laws. If you plan to attend, make sure to dress conservatively, in clothing without “pot leaves,” and remember to act professional and respectful.

S.R. 70 is a shortened, Senate-only resolution version of Sen. Tallian’s original bill, S.B. 192, which included more specific language directing the committee’s discussion. After a successful hearing, S.B. 192 passed the Indiana Senate, 28-21, on February 22, but never received a floor vote in the House after House Democrats walked out for nearly six weeks.

In unfortunate news, S.B. 86 passed the Senate, 48-1, on January 25 and the House, 88-1, on April 14 and is now law. This mean-spirited bill will declare a recipient ineligible for unemployment benefits if the recipient fails or refuses to take a pre-employment drug test and an employer withdraws a conditional offer of employment. The failed drug test must be confirmed by a second test, and the recipient must have “no valid medical reason for testing positive for the substance found in the drug test.” Unfortunately, because S.B. 86 also contained a “fix” to the state’s unemployment benefits formula, it received almost unanimous support in both chambers, despite its cruel and arbitrary drug testing provision.

Please contact your legislators to urge them to join the 16 other states that have passed laws to protect their sick and dying. If you are supportive and are a medical professional, a seriously ill patient who might benefit from medical marijuana, a law enforcement official, a clergy member, economist, a member of the legal community, or are someone who was arrested for marijuana, or you know someone else that is, please email state@mpp.org to see how you can be of special help. Please include your address or nine-digit ZIP code. 

Learn about Indiana's marijuana laws

Indiana has some of the harshest marijuana penalties in the country. Possession of even a single joint is punishable by up to a year of incarceration and up to a $5,000 fine. You can learn more about Indiana’s marijuana penalties and enforcement by reading this report by Jon Gettman, PhD. You can send a letter to your legislators asking them to reduce the penalty for possession of marijuana to a civil fine or asking them to end marijuana prohibition entirely.

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