On Wednesday the governor received a limited Tennessee medical cannabis bill from the legislature. It will expand the state’s limited CBD program and create a commission to study broader medical cannabis legalization.
This legislation is a compromise between reform supporters and its opponents. Advocates are still disappointed that more comprehensive legalization measures were rejected earlier this session.
Under the new proposal, it will create a nine-member commission. They will be analyzing federal and state cannabis laws to prepare legislation to legalize medical cannabis. In the measure, it specifies that implementing a medical cannabis market is incumbent on Congress rescheduling marijuana.
The Senate approved the bill 19-12 on Tuesday. Later the House also approved it in a 74-17 vote Wednesday.
The bill would allow patients with qualifying conditions to possess CBD oil that contains no more than 0.9 percent THC. This is three times greater than the federal definition of hemp.
The current program list of qualifying conditions will include multiple other conditions. People will need to keep proof of their condition and a recommendation from a physician to possess the oil.
For patients to obtain the medicine, they would have to go out of state or obtain it illegally in Tennessee. Currently, there are no lawful avenues to purchase cannabis within the state. With all things considered, this bill will only provide legal protections for some patients under strict circumstances.
The Path Forward
After the previous attempt to legalize medical cannabis failed, this latest compromise bill is the last opportunity for a Tennessee medical cannabis bill to pass. This would at least give residents something legal now instead of nothing.
The nine-member commission would serve as a resource for the study of federal and state laws for legal medical cannabis programs. Unfortunately, a legal medical cannabis program as of now, will not be permitted to operate in Tennessee until marijuana is removed from Schedule I of the federal Controlled Substances Act.
The commission will have to submit a report to both chambers of the legislature by January 1, 2022.
Pressure to enact a cannabis policy change is coming from multiple angles. The state’s voters are broadly in favor of the policy change. A survey from 2019 showed that 73 percent of those in Former House Speaker Glen Casada’s district back medical cannabis.
Multiple neighboring states to Tennessee have legal markets. Virginia legalized adult-use marijuana. A Senate-passed bill to legalize medical cannabis in Alabama was discussed on the House floor. In recent weeks, several reform bills have been introduced in North Carolina.
With voters supporting medical cannabis and more states around Tennessee legalizing marijuana we will keep you updated, make sure to check back for more cannabis and hemp related news.