INDIANAPOLIS — A state lawmaker announced Monday he’s working to try to legalize marijuana here in Indiana.
This follows the federal government’s reclassification of the drug in April.
That change didn’t legalize it across the United States, but it did signal a shift in how the federal government looks at marijuana, now considered less dangerous.
So what would legalizing it look like here?
With the 2027 legislative session still seven months away, Indiana Republican State Sen. Mike Bohacek says he’s working on legislation to legalize marijuana for medical use here in Indiana.
Bohacek says the legislation would legalize and create parameters for using marijuana for medical reasons. The proposal would also establish a tax rate and policy for the sale and distribution of medical marijuana.
“I think that’s a step in the right direction. I believe we’re going to see a lot more bills coming out from both chambers in developing a proper protocol here in the state,” said Jeff Staker, with Hoosier Veterans for Medical Cannabis.
Staker has spent years advocating at the Indiana Statehouse to legalize medical marijuana, in part, to help veterans suffering with various medical issues that marijuana has been used to treat.
“Doing it here in Indiana, we just want to make sure we’re doing it right and we’re doing it the best,” said Staker, who believes that starts with creating an Indiana Cannabis Commission made up of stakeholders on all sides of the issue.
“There’s a lot of concerns that go along with this and we need to make sure we’re doing it right,” Staker said.
The Indiana Chamber of Commerce is one of those that has expressed concern.
The chamber’s president, Vanessa Green Sinders, issued a statement, which said the issue would be reviewed this summer.
Sinders’ statement also says the following:
“Given employers’ continued concerns about impacts to on-the-job performance and workplace safety, the Indiana Chamber remains opposed to the legalization of marijuana in any form. However, we continue to support the use of isolated components of marijuana, cannabinoids or similar extracts for FDA-approved medicinal purposes.:
The Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council has also opposed any move to legalize marijuana in Indiana.
The IPAC issued a statement too which read:
“IPAC supports a total ban on THC products. The effects of THC, especially high potency THC, on the brains of children has been well documented. THC use has been tied to mental health issues, pregnancy complications, and an increase in impaired drivers. Any legalization, even medical, creates a complex legal and regulatory framework that allows bad actors to thrive and causes a massive influx of THC products into the state and the black market. Medical marijuana in particular is difficult to regulate, hard to monitor, and open to significant abuse. The costs of regulating THC often offset, if not surpass, revenue to the State. Thus, we oppose legalization efforts that create such a significant public safety risk.”
Bohacek’s proposal would also update the state’s impairment laws and establish a blood concentration that would define impairment.
It would also create trainings for police to identify impairment by THF, the main chemical in marijuana that causes the “high” people feel when they use it.
Bohacek also said legalizing medical marijuana has the potential to bring in millions of dollars in yearly tax revenue.
For years, Indiana’s Republican legislative leaders have resisted marijuana legalization, even as neighboring states legalized it.
13News reached out to Indiana Senate President Pro Tempore Rod Bray’s office about this issue and Bohacek’s proposal, and were told they have no comment.
13News also reached out to House Speaker Todd Huston’s office, but we did not get a response.
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