North Carolina lawmakers say discussions are being rekindled over the state’s marijuana laws — a move that comes as the Trump administration moves to reclassify the drug as less dangerous.
Across the country, a patchwork of laws and enforcement regulate marijuana. The drug is illegal under federal law, but dozens of U.S. states have legalized it. And nearly all states have legalized medical marijuana prescriptions for certain ailments. North Carolina is among the remaining states to resist any form of legalization.
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Republican politicians in North Carolina have resisted passing any sort of marijuana legalization or decriminalization bill, despite public polling that shows broad public support for such changes.
Senate Leader Phil Berger said this week that his chamber is expected to revisit efforts to legalize medical marijuana. “We’ll have a conversation within our caucus as to whether or not we do something if they’re interested,” Berger told reporters Tuesday.
Recent actions by Republican President Donald Trump could add a new dimension to those talks.
Trump’s acting attorney general on Thursday signed an order classifying medical marijuana as a less-dangerous — and less strictly regulated — drug. It does not legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use under federal law.
The move legitimizes medical marijuana programs in the 40 states that have adopted them. It sets up an expedited system for state-licensed medical marijuana producers and distributors to register with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. It also gives licensed medical marijuana operators a major tax break and eases some barriers to researching cannabis.
Multiple polls have shown a slim majority of North Carolinians would support full legalization of marijuana, and a WRAL News Poll from 2024 found medical marijuana enjoys support from 70% of the public, including a majority of self-described “very conservative” voters.
The state Senate has passed a bill to legalize medical marijuana multiple times in recent years, but GOP leaders in the state House have never allowed those proposals to be voted on.
The start of the 2026 short session this week has reignited questions of what, if anything, the legislature may try doing in the coming months to address marijuana policy. Lawmakers are also tackling budget adjustments, Medicaid funding and other unresolved issues.
Berger said Sen. Bill Rabon, R-Brunswick — who has long championed medical marijuana — is leading the legalization discussions.
Rabon didn’t immediately respond to an interview request. He previously acknowledged illicit marijuana use while he battled cancer, saying it helped him through his treatments and should be available to others who could use the drug to help with nausea or other health issues.
While the state House of Representatives has been loath to advance medical marijuana proposals from the Senate, representatives have focused on other proposals to regulate products that create highs similar to marijuana. Although marijuana remains illegal in North Carolina, other products containing Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is allowed. THC is the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. Hemp and marijuana contain THC, but hemp is legal in the state because it contains THC at far lower levels than marijuana — enough to impart some side-effects that users seek out, but generally not enough to get people high.
Some growers and manufacturers have figured out how to extract THC from hemp plants and introduce products into the marketplace touting the legal substance they do contain — cannabidiol, or CBD — but may possess enough THC to get someone high. Those products don’t face the same labeling requirements as other drugs and, officials say, are easily available at vape shops and convenience stores throughout the state. They are often marketed as legal alternatives to marijuana but are sold without consistent statewide standards for manufacturing, testing, labeling, packaging or age verification. Some shops sell these products to minors, officials say.
House leaders have advanced proposals to regulate hemp-derived THC products such as Delta-8 and Delta-9. The Senate has also considered THC regulation but has favored stricter bans.
That split between the chambers has left North Carolina without a medical marijuana program and without a unified approach to intoxicating hemp products.
North Carolina lawmakers remain divided on the issue.
Hall and Berger didn’t respond to WRAL’s requests for comment on whether they expect to come to an agreement following the Trump administration’s declassification.
Democratic Gov. Josh Stein supports legalization. He formed the North Carolina Advisory Council on Cannabis — made up of law enforcement officials, bipartisan lawmakers, health experts, farming interests and others. The group says a regulated market that allows licensed retail sales of such products to adults will lead to better oversight, enforcement and consumer safety. States that have chosen to regulate adult-use cannabis have generated between approximately $33 million to $552 million in annual tax revenue, the group said in a recent report.
As lawmakers weigh new proposals, local politicians are already shifting policies tied to marijuana use.
Former U.S. Rep. Wiley Nickel, a former state lawmaker who is scheduled to become Wake County District Attorney on Jan. 1, said Monday — a day before the Trump announcement — that he plans to implement a new policy that “significantly changes how medical marijuana and low-level marijuana cases are addressed.”
He didn’t elaborate on the policy.
In a social media post, Nickel said he supported legislation to legalize medical marijuana.
“Real change requires action by the General Assembly—especially as 40 states already allow some form of marijuana use,” Nickel said. “It’s time for North Carolina to join the list.”
He said he’s seen firsthand the benefits of medical marijuana: his father relied on illegal marijuana for relief during his final days battling cancer.
“It matters for veterans and active-duty soldiers dealing with PTSD,” he said. “It matters for people facing the end of life. And it matters for those living with serious injuries and chronic pain.”