Senate objections have delayed a long-negotiated plan to alter Ohio’s voter-approved recreational cannabis law, derailing a House vote that had been scheduled for Wednesday.
Issue 2, approved by 57% of voters in November 2023, allows those 21 and older to buy, possess and grow cannabis. Republican leaders, however, have spent months arguing over how much to change those voter‑approved rules, even before the adult-use market officially launched.
Initially, Republican leaders argued for changes that would have rolled back many aspects of the law. State Representative Jamie Callender (R), a longtime cannabis supporter who led negotiations for the House, said lawmakers believed they had reached a deal that preserved home‑grow limits, kept product taxes flowing to municipalities that host dispensaries, and added safeguards to keep marijuana out of children’s hands. That agreement unraveled late Tuesday when Senate leaders delivered a list of 16 fresh demands.
Among the new proposals: redirecting the entire 10% retail tax to the state’s General Revenue Fund, trimming or capping THC levels, cutting household plant limits in half, and imposing mandatory jail time for passing a joint between adults—a change Callender called “out of step with what voters approved.”
House Speaker Matt Huffman (R) told reporters he was blindsided by the last‑minute revisions and pulled the bill rather than force his caucus to swallow them. “We want a bill, but we’re not giving up House priorities to get one,” he said.
Senator Steve Huffman (R), who handled the Senate’s side of the talks, insisted an outline had been settled and predicted negotiators could still bridge the gap within a week.
Rep. Callender is less confident. He argues that stripping local governments of cannabis tax revenue and criminalizing small‑scale sharing ignores both the spirit and the letter of Issue 2. “That would be thumbing our nose at the clear will of the voters,” he said.
With just days left before lawmakers break for the summer, it remains unclear whether the chambers can revive the compromise or if adult‑use sales will continue under the rules voters set last fall—at least until the next legislative skirmish.
