Ohio Legislature creates new cannabis crimes; referendum launches to repeal the gutting of legalization

On November 7, 2023, 57% of Ohio voters approved Issue 2, an MPP-backed law legalizing cannabis for adults 21 and older. Adult-use sales began from existing medical cannabis dispensaries on August 6, 2024.

Outrageously, in late 2025, the Ohio Legislature voted to whittle away voter-enacted freedoms and recriminalize innocuous conduct, and Gov. DeWine signed the bill (SB 56). Among the other provisions, SB 56 recriminalizes cannabis obtained from anywhere other than Ohio-licensed retailers and homegrown cannabis and repeals non-discrimination protections — which prevented Ohioans from being stripped of their professional licenses or denied custody of their children, benefits, or medical care — including organ transplants — for responsible cannabis use. The bill also caps the number of cannabis dispensaries at 400 and eliminates level III (smaller) cultivation licenses. The Legislature-passed version allowed intoxicating hemp beverages with up to five milligrams of THC until December 2026, but Gov. DeWine line-item vetoed that provision, making intoxicating hemp illegal when the new law takes effect.

However, voters may get the final say: Ohioans for Cannabis Choice has launched a signature drive for a referendum to overturn SB 56. They have a few months to collect 248,092 valid signatures from Ohio voters, with additional signature requirements in half of the counties. If they succeed, the measure would be on hold until Election Day in November.

When the Ohio Senate first proposed gutting Issue 2 in 2023, it would have gone even further with recriminalization, including by making it illegal to pass a joint, grow cannabis at home, and to smoke cannabis in one’s own backyard.  MPP, NORML, ACLU-Ohio, other allies, and more than 20,000 Ohioans decried these rollbacks on voter-approved freedoms. Meanwhile, as attorney Derek Clinger explains in a law review article, these changes to the voter-approved initiative may well be unconstitutional.  

Medical Cannabis in Ohio

In 2015-2016, MPP and our allies mobilized to put medical cannabis on the ballot. In response, state lawmakers passed a law to establish a medical cannabis program for Ohioans in 2016. For more information on Ohio’s medical marijuana program and access to patient forms and other resources, visit Division of Cannabis Control's website. And, for an overview of the current medical marijuana law, see this summary.

Cannabis Decriminalization 

Ohio has one of the oldest “decriminalization” laws on the books, dating back to 1975. While cannabis is now legal for adults, the “decrim” penalties continue to apply to those under 21. For minors, possessing less than 100 grams (or about 3.5 ounces), giving 20 grams or less of marijuana to another person, or growing less than 100 grams of marijuana are each considered “minor misdemeanors,” punishable by a maximum fine of $150. A minor misdemeanor is not a “jailable” offense, but it is a criminal offense.

Cannabis Freedoms and Limitations

With voters’ passage of Issue 2 in November 2023, adults 21 and older can possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis, up to 15 grams of concentrate, and securely and discreetly cultivate six plants. However, in late 2025, the legislature re-criminalized:

• Transporting cannabis that is not either in its original, unopened packaging, or stored in a trunk or similar area.
• Possessing cannabis obtained anywhere other than from an Ohio retailer or homegrown cannabis (such as cannabis from Michigan).
• Possessing edibles if they are not stored “in the original packaging at all times when the products are not actively in use.”
• Inhaling cannabis anywhere other than residential or agricultural properties with the owner’s permission (such as a bar’s patio, parking lot, or a smoking hotel room).

The new offenses are mostly minor misdemeanors, punishable by up to a $150 fine. You can read more about Ohio’s legalization law, and restrictions approved by the Ohio Legislature and Gov. DeWine (R), here. Every Democrat voted against the bill.

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