The yearly unofficial “holiday” celebrating marijuana is here once again for “420-friendly” Americans.
Though North Carolina is one of only a few states remaining with neither medical nor recreational marijuana legalized, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians previously celebrated “420” by opening the area’s first cannabis dispensary on April 20, 2024.
Cherokee is a sovereign nation that has its own elections, laws, government and institutions that are self-governed and autonomous, meaning the EBCI was able to legalize the sale of marijuana despite being within N.C.
For the rest of the Tar Heel State, cannabis remains decriminalized but illegal. However, as reported by the Citizen Times, the N.C. Advisory Council on Cannabis recently released a report urging state government to make some changes to the North Carolina cannabis market.
Here’s what to know on the unofficial “weed holiday” this year.
There are plenty of stories out there about exactly why the number 420 (and date April 20) is associated with marijuana. While there’s no definitive answer to its original significance, one of the most popular theories ties the number and date to a group of Californian teenagers, according to USA TODAY reports.
According to the lore, a group of high schoolers attending Northern California’s San Rafael High School in the early 1970s would regularly gather at 4:20 p.m. to smoke pot.
April 20 is regarded by many cannabis enthusiasts as not only a day to appreciate the plant, but a rallying date for the nationwide legalization of marijuana.
Marijuana is not legal in North Carolina, though it is decriminalized, meaning possession of small amounts intended for personal use rather than illegal sales will generally mean punishments of civil or local infractions rather than state crimes.
Despite the lack of legal cannabis in N.C., a popular loophole in legislation allowing industrial hemp – marijuana with little to no THC ― has made it possible to get legally stoned. It is illegal to grow cannabis plants with more than a 0.3% concentration of delta-9 THC. Delta-8 THC, however, is not mentioned in the legislation.
Delta-8 is one of over 100 cannabinoids produced by cannabis plants, and while it is usually not found in high amounts, many N.C. hemp businesses have begun extracting the compound from plants or converting other compounds like CBD into delta-8. If you’ve seen weed sold at gas stations, tobacco stores or anywhere else, it’s likely psychoactive “delta-8” or a similar compound.
It’s worth mentioning that, while delta-8 causes a “high,” the FDA has not evaluated or approved it as safe for consumption, meaning that delta-8 products are not regulated by the FDA and could therefore be harmful to your health.
An April 2 report from the N.C. Advisory Council on Cannabis addressed the loophole in state legislation that allows for the sale of intoxicating cannabis products such as those containing delta-8 THC. Officials wrote that the Tar Heel State’s market for intoxicating cannabis “currently exists in a dangerous policy gap that is neither true prohibition nor meaningful regulation.”
In the report, the council suggested that the state regulate the THC molecule as the intoxicating substance, “rather than continuing the legal but unworkable distinction between marijuana and hemp.”
Secondly, the council suggested that North Carolina establish a well-regulated market for intoxicating cannabis products, including oversight and enforcement authority. The report covered a possible adult-use regulatory model for such a market, under which adults would be permitted to “legally purchase, possess, and use cannabis through state-licensed retail outlets.”
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians voted in 2021 to legalize the sale of medical marijuana within its tribal territory, known as the Qualla Boundary. Cherokee is a sovereign nation that has its own elections, laws, government and institutions that are self-governed and autonomous. That’s why it can make legal the sale of marijuana despite being within North Carolina.
According to a Feb. 10, report from the the Los Angeles Department of Cannabis Regulation, the 24 states where marijuana is fully legal include Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.
An additional 16 states have legalized marijuana for medical use only, including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Hawaii, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.
Iris Seaton is the trending news reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at iseaton@citizentimes.com.