Just hours before recreational marijuana becomes legal in Ohio, the Senate approved a revision to Issue 2 that would impact taxes, home grow and THC levels.
Gov. Mike DeWine held a press conference Wednesday evening to discuss the changes proposed, not long before the Senate voted.
DeWine said changes need to be implemented to prevent Ohioans from purchasing marijuana through the black market as soon as it is legal.
“Without the enactment of this bill, we will have the following situation: While it will be legal for Ohio citizens to possess marijuana, there will be no place for them to legally buy it,” DeWine said. “This bill deals with this and deal with it by speeding up the time when adults will be able to produce recreational marijuana legally, thus reducing the opportunity for the black market.”
Under the currently approved changes, households will be able to have six marijuana plants. The original Issue 2 language would have allowed households to grow up to 12.
The Senate’s proposal also:
- Sets a 15% flat tax on recreational sale. Under Issue 2, it would be 10%.
- Creates a provision that allows any Ohioan who has pleaded guilty to possession of under 2.5 ounces of marijuana to expunge their record. Issue 2 did not specifically reference any expungement.
- Limits the maximum THC content for extract to 50%. In Issue 2, that limit was 90%.
The Senate voted in favor of the changes 29-2 around 6 p.m. Wednesday evening — just six hours before Issue 2 was slated to go into effect.
The changes will still need to be approved by the Ohio House and signed by DeWine before it fully becomes law. The version of Issue 2 going into effect Thursday is still the version that 57% of voters approved in November.
