Now
38°
Thu
52°
Fri
45°
For the entire region from 7 a.m. Saturday to 1 p.m. Monday. Accumulating snow, sleet & freezing rain will create many travel impacts.
by Jennifer Emert
CHEROKEE COUNTY, N.C. (WLOS) — Recreational sales of marijuana — in at least one area of North Carolina — has been approved and could start in about a month. Marijuana remains illegal in North Carolina.
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ Tribal Council voted Thursday morning, June 6, to amend its cannabis ordinance to now provide for adult use for recreational sales. The Tribe opened its medical marijuana dispensary in April.
NORTH CAROLINA'S FIRST MEDICAL CANNABIS DISPENSARY OPENS FOR BUSINESS
While Thursday's ordinance changes Chapter 17, which deals with tribal law that governs medical marijuana sales, it didn't spell out when sales would begin. At a May 30 work session on cannabis, Qualla Enterprises’ General Manager Forrest Parker gave the council an estimate of when they could be ready.
CHEROKEE VOTERS EMBRACE RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA, MARKING A HISTORIC FIRST IN NORTH CAROLINA
“Our goal would be to target about 30 to 45 days for Tribal members and as fast as humanly possible we can open the door for them, and then be pushing out for that 60-day range that 75-day range for the general public,” Parker said May 30.
Both medical and recreational marijuana use remains illegal in the state of North Carolina, making it only legal within the Qualla Boundary. The new ordinance will also regulate how hemp products can be sold on Tribal lands.
SEEING GREEN: MEDICAL MARIJUANA DEBUT IN WNC STIRS SAFETY CONCERNS AND PATIENT CARD SURGE
2026 Sinclair, Inc.