Ohio: Market and regulatory data analysis of the cannabis sector

6th August 2024: US - Ohio: The legal sale of recreational cannabis in Ohio begins today. The Ohio Division of Cannabis Control is issuing Certificates of Operation to 98 eligible dispensaries across the state, though not all 98 will be ready to open their doors yet. Voters in Ohio, the seventh largest state in the US, approved a ballot measure to legalise recreational cannabis in November 2023.
19th July 2024: US - Ohio: The Ohio Division of Cannabis Control (DCC) has issued a series of cease-and-desist letters to manufacturers of delta-8 THC products that allegedly used packaging to resemble popular food items and appeal to children, press reports. The warning letters come on the heels of similar enforcement action taken by federal authorities.
26th June 2024: US - Ohio: The Division of Cannabis Control (DCC) has issued 62 provisional dual licences for medical cannabis dispensaries to sell recreational cannabis, press reports. However, those provisional licensees must still meet several requirements to obtain a certificate of operation to begin recreational sales. “There will be no one singular day when sales begin. We will start issuing licences, and it will be up to the retailer based on staffing, stock, and other considerations as to which day they will begin sales,” a spokesperson for the Department of Commerce told the media.
14th May 2024: US - Ohio: The Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR) passed rules to regulate recreational cannabis, thus clearing the final legislative hurdle for sales to begin, press reports. Licences for medical cannabis dispensaries to begin distributing recreational cannabis will be made available by 7th June, and recreational sales could begin later in June.
12th April 2024: US - Ohio: Republican governor Mike DeWine has called on lawmakers to pass legislation banning public cannabis consumption and also to prohibit the sale of intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoids, like delta-8 THC. He said another urgent issue the General Assembly should address is restricting intoxicating cannabinoids, since he believes substances such as delta-8 THC are “widely unregulated” and “easily accessible to kids in gas stations and convenience stores in Ohio and disguised as candies and gummies”.
8th January 2024: US - Ohio: Governor Mike Dewine is calling for regulating intoxicating hemp-derived products, such as those containing delta-8 THC, press reports. Dewine expressed concern that these products are being sold widely but that no one in the state currently has jurisdiction over them. A Republican lawmaker is drafting a standalone bill to regulate them.
13th December 2023: US - Ohio: House speaker Jason Stephens told the media that the House will not vote on amendments to the state's new recreational cannabis law before the end of the year. While the House will resume discussions on the amendments in January, Stephens acknowledged that the House will not concur with the current Senate version of the bill.
5th December 2023: US - Ohio: A Senate committee has added and approved major changes to the recreational cannabis legalisation ballot initiative approved by voters last month that is scheduled to take effect on 7th December, press reports. The emergency measure was attached to a liquor control bill and would make the following changes, among others: prohibit home cultivation of cannabis, set potency limits on cannabis products, reduce the permissible amount of cannabis that may legally be possessed, increase the cannabis excise tax from 10% to 15%, redirect tax revenues, restrict public consumption, and decrease the permissible number of dispensaries. The bill must be approved by the plenary Senate, which could vote on it this week, and then by the House.
8th November 2023: US - Ohio: Ohio has become the 24th state to legalise recreational cannabis after voters passed a ballot initiative to do so, press reports. The initiative, which becomes effective in 30 days (7th December), allows adults (21+) to possess, purchase and cultivate up to six plants at home. A 10% sales tax will be levied on the purchase of recreational cannabis and advertising would be allowed, though regulators could later set certain restrictions. The initiative creates the Division of Cannabis Control within the Ohio Department of Commerce to oversee the programme and requires rules to be approved and licences to be issued within nine months of the effective date of the initiative, that is, by 7th September 2024.
7th November 2023: US - Ohio: Voters will decide today (7th November) the fate of an initiative to legalise recreational cannabis in the state. If passed, recreational cannabis could be possessed, sold and used by adults (21+) in all major product formats. A 10% sales tax would be levied on the purchase of recreational cannabis and advertising would be allowed, though regulators could later set certain restrictions. With a population of over 11m people, Ohio is the seventh largest state in the US and would be the fourth-largest state to legalise recreational cannabis.
17th August 2023: US - Ohio: The Ohio secretary of state has verified enough signatures for an initiative to legalise recreational cannabis in the state to reach the 7th November election ballot, press reports. If passed by voters, recreational cannabis could be possessed, sold and used by adults (21+) in all major product formats, and legislation would include licensing for cultivating, processing, dispensing and testing. A 10% sales tax would be levied on the purchase of recreational cannabis, and advertising would be allowed, though regulators could later set certain restrictions.
4th August 2023: US - Ohio: Organisers of a November ballot initiative to legalise recreational cannabis in the state have submitted nearly ten times the amount of necessary signatures to qualify the initiative for the ballot, press reports. The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol (CTRMLA) fell short by 679 signatures after the first round of submissions, but has submitted approximately 6,500 additional signatures within the ten-day period that it had to submit more. If at least 679 signatures are validated, it would appear to be the last hurdle to reach the November ballot, though legalisation ballot initiatives are often challenged in court.

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