. . .know what the rules are. Even if voters in your state legalized cannabis, it’s your lawmakers who decide how it all works. And as you might expect, it’s a messy process – with a lot of opinions and interests gumming up the works – which often results in laws that are different from any other state. Typically, cannabis laws are not hard to understand. But you should spend a few minutes reviewing them before you buy an ounce of your chosen legal bud.
Why does it have to be so complicated?
In April of 2016, the Federal Drug Enforcement Agency announced it was going to “think about” reducing the classification for cannabis from being a “schedule 1” controlled substance (like heroin) to something less serious.
That announcement from the DEA started a avalanche of chatter about the DEA finally coming to their senses.
Check out the laws in your state.
Several months passed – certainly enough time to review the mountain of credible science and research on cannabis – and when the announcement finally came, they declared they had decided to not reclassify cannabis. Their position continued to be cannabis as bad as heroin. Seemingly intelligent people actually said that.
The question many are asking is, “Why the intransigence and blind-to-science cannabis policy?” Everyone seems to have an opinion and many are speculating big money interests got involved.
There’s a long list of suspiciously self-interested corporate entities who’ve come out against cannabis.
Police departments lobby for millions in federal grants towards eradicating weed.
Big pharma compensates leading anti-marijuana researchers to spew misinformation that help keep their customers on painkillers vs. less expensive cannabis.
Companies that run for-profit prisons want to keep making money building and running more prisons to fill with non-violent marijuana offenders.
Cannabis is also competition for the alcohol and beer industries. They’ve lobbied for years to keep cannabis illegal.
In mid-2013, what was seen as a step in the right direction, the Justice Department issued a directive (referred to as the “Cole Memo”) that encouraged federal prosecutors around the country relax enforcement against the cannabis industry as long as they were in compliance with state and local laws.
They really seemed to finally “get it.” That the will of the people was being heard.
Understand that federal law continued to make anything cannabis-related a federal crime. But when the Feds decided to take a hands off approach, the cannabis industry in general suddenly felt more free to “move about the cabin” and begin to operate somewhat like a regular business.
But 2018 began with a thunderclap. On January 4, the Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, acting on a long-standing personal disdain for anything cannabis, rescinded that directive and once again encouraged federal prosecutors to use their discretion and prosecute cannabis activities.
Thankfully, the federal prosecutors who got that memo didn’t get the message. Nearly all immediately issued statements to make it clear that with respect to drugs enforcement, they will use their resources to combat actual crimes like illegal growing, trafficking and the opiod crisis.
All in all, no individual who abides by state cannabis laws is in danger of being prosecuted. It’s only the cannabis industry who once again has to keep looking over their shoulders.
The cannabis laws in your state may happen without a vote
Voters in many states have been choosing to decriminalize cannabis for years. And even with the Justice Department’s “new sheriff in town” approach, lawmakers in some states are deciding to make cannabis legal, rather than waiting for voters to decide at ballot box.
Cannabis is cannabis, so why such diverse laws to regulate it? Local laws are crafted through the lens or filter of the local culture. And because for decades, cannabis has been so badly maligned, making choices and crafting laws now about how to regulate it reveals deep divides in sentiment.
Every state has it’s own unique character and culture. California, a state that practically invented the liberal mindset of today, was the first to vote medical cannabis legal. Other states like Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana are far more conservative – and their laws reflect that. Those three states may be the very last – if ever – to legalize cannabis.
One of the worst places in the country to be caught with cannabis? Louisiana. Chalk that up to a staunchly conservative local culture. I will suggest that if cannabis is every legalized in Louisiana, it may be one of the last states to do so.
These deep divides show up even in Colorado, where recreational cannabis was voted legal, one might assume everyone there is pro-cannabis. But the truth is there are still communities where neighbor is pitted against neighbor over the issue.
States have even been pitted against state over legal cannabis. The supreme court recently declined to hear arguments over a suit brought by Nebraska and Oklahoma seeking to repeal Colorado’s legal marijuana Laws.
Looking at it from a macro perspective, different state legislators deciding how to fit cannabis into state law books and tax code has resulted in a confusing and diverse patchwork landscape of regulations and laws.
When you buy legal cannabis, even if you have been doing so regularly, you should assume nothing. Take the time to know what you are doing in whatever state you live in.
Several good resources to refer to for cannabis laws and regulations are NORMAL, ProCon and Leafly (see box below).
Why I strongly advise that you buy your cannabis legally.
I say buy your cannabis legally, but for other reasons. It’s not about what you avoid (trouble), it’s about what you gain. Buying from legal sources – like a dispensary – will offer you a number of significant benefits.
12 great reasons to shop at legal cannabis dispensaries:
- Legal dispensaries can operate openly in a retail location.
- Shopping there is much safer than buying on the street.
- Going to a dispensary means you can relax and shop worry-free.
- Your purchases happen in clean, well-lit public shops.
- They earn your business through competitive service, products and prices.
- Dispensaries have the best cannabis available anywhere.
- The product in the dispensary is fresh, recently harvest bud
- They sell only buds and not chopped plant matter in a bag.
- You can choose from many clearly labeled strains of cannabis.
- An experienced and knowledgeable budtender can help you select product.
- Leave the dispensary knowing that what you just bought is your legal property.
- Shop there often enough and your budtender will know you and your preferences.
You seldom get that experience buying your cannabis on the street. Buying cannabis on the street or through other “off-channel” venues, means you often get whatever mystery weed is in the bag.
Don’t ask a friend with a medical marijuana card to buy cannabis for you. Besides being illegal, whatever information you get about the product is filtered through them. You will also miss out on seeing for yourself what’s available, asking questions and making your own choices – and most especially, meeting with and developing that all-important relationship with your preferred budtender.
You can expect little to no customer service, no knowledge of THC or CBD levels, no idea how old the product is, no guarantees it’s not been diluted with other plant matter, or if what you’re buying is the same strain of cannabis as the last time you purchased from them.
When you go to a cannabis shop in states where it’s legal to buy recreational cannabis, they will check your valid government issued ID for a minimum age requirement.
For states where it’s only legal to buy medical cannabis, the shops are called dispensaries, and they will check your ID as well as a valid medical marijuana card. Some states also issue a certificate that you will have to show at the dispensary on your first visit.
Don’t ask a friend with a medical marijuana card to buy cannabis for you. Besides being illegal, whatever information you get about the product is filtered through them. You will also miss out on seeing for yourself what’s available, asking questions and making your own choices – and most especially, meeting with and developing that all-important relationship with your preferred budtender.
If you buy cannabis in states where it is only legal for medical use, be sure any friends and guests you share it with have a valid medical cannabis card, or you could be taking a very serious legal risk.
Think of it in the same way you naturally avoid serving alcohol to minors.
The do’s and Dont’s
Every state has laws that deal with cannabis. Please take the time to visit these excellent sites to read and understand the laws for the state you are in, or any state you are will perhaps travel to where cannabis is on your agenda.
Some can accept the new normal and some cannot.
The relatively swift trend towards legal cannabis has had a somewhat polarizing effect. Not everyone agrees cannabis should be legal, even for medical use, including some in law enforcement.
After decades of fighting the war on drugs, many in law enforcement are very disturbed by the idea that cannabis is suddenly legal.
The best advice I can offer is to stay within the legal limits and requirements. Don’t give them a reason to pay attention to you.
Otherwise, you risk crossing paths with an officer who may use every legal means to make an example of you.
Traveling to another state to buy cannabis is fine but you must consume it all there, or dispose of what’s left before you come back. Don’t get caught crossing state lines with cannabis in any form.
Bad plan – bad, bad, bad. Can you spell “felony trafficking?” I have encountered stories about state law enforcement officers specifically targeting traffic coming out of a state where cannabis is legal, crossing the border into their state where it is not.
They have a job to do, so be smart about your choices. If you buy cannabis while you are away, just don’t bring it back with you.
The unexpected and unintended consequences of legal cannabis
As the cannabis vote continues to force them out of their comfort zone, lawmakers are confronted with legislating the many new realities of cannabis in our society.
Lawmakers in states across the country are racing to craft cannabis-related laws in the face of a churning and evolving normal. As the cannabis vote continues to force them out of their comfort zone, lawmakers are confronted with legislating the many realities of cannabis in our society.
Lawmakers in states across the country are racing to craft cannabis-related laws in the face of a churning and evolving normal.
One example is edible dosage levels. Colorado now has laws to address the issue of edibles that were too strong for first-time users.
There were too many instances of people new to cannabis overdosing and experiencing temporary psychotic episodes and paranoid delusions – by eating an edible that had perhaps as much as one hundred milligrams of THC.
Now in Colorado, the maximum amount of THC in a single serving of an edible is now ten milligrams.
On the upside, in states where cannabis is legal, statistics have revealed that alcohol use (and therefor DUI numbers) and crime have declined. And that state and local coffers are enjoying a significant boost from cannabis generated tax revenue.
It’s just the beginning, but the cannabis industry is starting to be held to the same high standards other food and drug manufactures have to answer to.
It is a process and there’s a long way to go, but the edible product on the market is better than it was even a year ago.
It’s worth paying attention as the cannabis-related laws will slowly evolve to reflect the current sentiment and understanding of how cannabis is fitting into our society and how much of an enforcement issue it is.
Whatever your choices are when you buy cannabis, be guided by the rules in your area and you shouldn’t have any problems enjoying or using this amazing plant.
One thing is clear; It’s all going to make for an interesting ride.