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Intoxicating hemp products and THC-infused beverages are now illegal again in Ohio and the maximum potency of extracts is lower, due to a law that took effect on March 20.
Ohio voters legalized recreational marijuana and related products when they passed Issue 2 in 2023. Republican lawmakers vowed almost immediately to roll back parts of it, and they made good on that late last year, passing the new restrictions mostly along party lines.
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Here are some of the changes, including new potential criminal penalties for not transporting personal stashes correctly, bringing THC products across state lines or toking in public.
You can partake in a privately owned property unless it is also a childcare facility, halfway house or community residential center. Renters can still smoke in a house or apartment unless the lease prohibits it.
Recreational and medical marijuana edibles and other products must be stored in original packaging, even after they are opened.
If the original package has been opened, it must be kept in the trunk of your vehicle or behind the last row of seats if there’s no trunk. In other words, out of reach of the driver. The same rules apply for pipes, vapes and other marijuana paraphernalia.
It’s now illegal to bring any recreational-use cannabis products into Ohio, even if they were legally purchased in another state. (Looking at you, Michigan.) Sellers of these products, including popular edibles and seltzers, can no longer ship these products to you in Ohio.
Not right now. But the new law opens the door to possible home delivery of medical marijuana once the Division of Cannabis Control writes rules and standards.
Yes, but with some changes.
Yes. The THC level for extracts is now capped at 70% (down from 90%). The limit for medical and recreational-use plants remains at 35%.
Yes, if it violates your employer’s policies. That was true under Issue 2, the law passed by voters in 2023. But under the new law, workers fired for violating a drug policy are not eligible for unemployment benefits from the state.
Home growing is still an option and the limit is still six plants per adult 21 and over or a total of 12 in one residence. However, growing even one plant over that limit can lead to charges of illegally cultivating marijana, which can carry a criminal penalty.
The new law outlaws the sale of marijuana products that share a likeness with fictional characters, real ones, animals, fruit or images that might attract children.
Lawmakers did away with the social equity and jobs fund created by Issue 2 and money for substance abuse and addiction education and treatment programs. Cities with dispensaries still get 36% of the tax revenue and the rest goes into state’s general fund. The sales of recreational marijuana products in Ohio last year topped $836 million.
For more about all the recent changes, check out this side-by-side comparison chart from Ohio State’s Moritz College of Law. Read the full set of legal changes here.
Correction: Tax revenue distribution was changed by the state budget, HB96, not the law that took effect on March 20.
Ohio effort to repeal intoxicating hemp bill falls short, by Andrew Tobias (March 19, 2026)
A new Ohio marijuana law could mean legal risks for users, by Jake Zuckerman (December 5, 2025)
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