State Rep. Jamie Callender speaks at a news conference with other Ohio House Republicans. (Photo: Morgan Trau/WEWS)
The Ohio House overwhelmingly passed bipartisan legislation reforming both the marijuana and hemp industries.
When voters decided to legalize recreational marijuana in 2023, they knew what they wanted, said marijuana industry spokeswoman Adrienne Robbins.
“We want to keep it in place,” said Robbins of the Ohio Cannabis Coalition.
That’s why he supports revised marijuana policy Senate Bill No. 56 — the House’s latest attempt to pass THC policy changes.
“Both sides, all factions of this issue are coming together to get this bill done,” said House Finance Chairman Brian Stewart (R-Ashville). “And I think it’s a big success.”
Since the beginning of the year, Stewart and other marijuana advocates have been trying to reach a compromise with the Senate on separate cannabis bills. The Senate wanted to pass dozens of restrictions, but the House said that’s not what Ohioans chose.
Stewart, working with House of Representatives representatives. Jamie Callender (R-Concord) and Tex Fischer (R-Boardman) tried to negotiate with the Senate. Callender is known as a marijuana expert, while Fischer calls himself a “cannabis representative.”
Ultimately, the two chambers reached an agreement this summer, but the Senate backed out at the last minute.
“Do you think this is closer to the will of the voters?” I asked Stewart.
“Oh, of course,” he replied.
The House bill keeps home development at the same level, limits marketing that appeals to children and finally gives cities with dispensaries a share of sales tax revenues.
“This is something these communities have been waiting for,” Robbins said. “This is something they were promised.”
The city of Cleveland said it appreciated the Chamber’s move.
“We are hopeful that this will advance through the Legislature and that we will receive these funds soon, which will be directed toward the urgent needs of our community, including public safety,” said city spokesman Tyler Sinclair.
However, cannabis retailer Doug Strahm said the legislation is unfair.
“They want to financially push people out of business, and that’s not what this country is about,” Strahm said.
The legislation essentially bans intoxicating cannabis products and low-level THC, which are widely available at gas stations and smoke shops. It is also often packaged to look like candy and has no age restriction. However, the bill provides some exceptions for low-concentration products, and stores can still sell THC-containing drinks to people 21 years of age and older.
The bill also establishes a legal framework to regulate hemp products similar to marijuana. But Strahm complained that it came at a high cost – $5,000 more than a cannabis dispensary license.
“Trying to get into the cannabis industry for $75,000 for a new license, even though it takes over two years, is really difficult,” he said.
Stewart argued it’s about safety — making sure children don’t get THC and that adults know what’s in the product they buy.
“It kind of balances the situation – keep it away from the kids, but it also doesn’t arbitrarily put people out of business,” Stewart said.
Now the bill goes back to the Senate for negotiations, and Senate President Rob McColley (R-Napoleon) wasn’t thrilled with the bill.
“There will be some issues that probably some members of our club will have issues with,” McColley said.
I asked him what his concerns were so far.
“It’s a completely new regulatory regime for cannabis compared to what we’ve been talking about… We have some concerns about some of the other issues around how products are treated and so on,” McColley said.
After the article aired, Robbins added that while she supports the marijuana provisions in the bill, she does not support the hemp portion. When asked why, she said she still needs to read the bill more closely to see what changes she wants to see regarding cannabis regulations, but she already has some concerns – similar to McColley.
The marijuana industry and the hemp industry are competitive, and several dispensaries have previously told us that they believe you should not sell cannabis without having a full marijuana license.
Cannabis Industry Coalition Leader Dakota Sawyer said he was trying to talk to persuade the Senate to disagree.
When asked how to deal with the conference committee, the Chamber responded that it knows its priorities and will represent Ohioans while ensuring that all THC products are protected and regulated.
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This article was originally published on News5Cleveland.com and are published in the Ohio Capital Journal under a content sharing agreement. Unlike other OCJ articles, it is not available for free republication on other news outlets because it is owned by WEWS in Cleveland.
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