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Will 2023 be the year Tennessee legalizes medical marijuana?




Bryan Terry

Bryan Terry

As a vibrant industry of legal cannabis businesses and restaurants continues to grow around Nashville, Tennessee remains one of just 13 states that has not comprehensively legalized medical marijuana. Will 2023 be the year?

Changes in federal law may propel updates in how the state deals with medical marijuana and cannabis research. Last month, President Joe Biden signed into law the Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act, which lifts restrictions on doctors discussing cannabis with their patients and streamlines the process for legal research and drug development of marijuana products.

House Health Committee Chairman Bryan Terry, R-Murfreesboro, who has sponsored legislation to expand access to medical marijuana in the past, says the federal government’s move is “a small step forward,” but federal law still maintains barriers to research progress.

Terry plans to sponsor legislation to permit more medical cannabis research in Tennessee.

“I believe there could be some adaptations with current federal law that could help with passage of a medical cannabis bill,” Terry told Main Street Nashville in an email. “At the minimum, I plan on bringing legislation that will decriminalize possession of cannabis-based research medicines that would fall under this new law.”

Terry said he’s also planning to sponsor a bill to clean up conflicts between state and federal law relating to universities and cannabis research.

“As a patient advocate, the failure of the federal government to take the necessary steps to help patients with access to cannabis-based medicines is beyond disappointing,” he added.

Tennessee law currently prohibits the possession, use, sale, and distribution of marijuana and cannabis products with more than 0.3% THC content. Due to federal law, CBD products with a THC content of less than 0.3% can be sold nationwide. Tennessee is one of 19 states that still imprisons individuals for possessing even half an ounce or less of cannabis. Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk has said he will not prosecute individuals for possession of under half an ounce of marijuana.

Five of Tennessee’s neighbors – Missouri, Virginia, Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama – have all legalized marijuana for medical purposes. Missouri and Virginia also allow recreational use, as have 19 other states.

Under a law passed in 2021, people diagnosed with certain illnesses may use CBD oil with up to 0.9% THC if it is recommended by their doctor to treat epilepsy, seizures, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis, certain cancers, HIV/AIDs and ALS. This year, lawmakers added quadriplegia to the list of qualifying medical conditions for medical cannabis use.

Also in 2021, state lawmakers created a commission to study the possibility of future medical marijuana legalization. The Tennessee Medical Cannabis Commission released a report last year analyzing other states’ legalization models, proposing language for how Tennessee could do so. Legislation to do so did not move forward last spring.

As lawmakers consider regulations, a vibrant cannabis industry has cropped up around Nashville, with interstate billboards advertising “Consider It Flowers” – Nashville’s own THC delivery service, and DAZED8, a recreational hemp superstore.

Tennessee’s first-ever cannabis bar and restaurant, Buds and Brews, opened this year in Germantown. The spot offers bar fare paired with craft sauces infused with hemp-derived THC. Across town, Holistic Connection dispensaries offer a variety of baked goods and snacks made with “Nashville-grown craft cannabis,” all remaining under legal limits.

A proposal for full recreational legalization is coming, though, from Nashville Democrats Sen. Heidi Campbell and Rep. Bob Freeman, who announced their plans to file a recreational legalization bill this month. As of Dec. 30, the bill had not yet been filed. House Democratic Caucus Chairman John Ray Clemmons praised Campbell and Freeman’s proposal.

“The legalization of cannabis in Tennessee is long overdue. For too long, much of the TN GOP has stood in the way,” Clemmons wrote in a tweet. “Let’s do this in 2023!”

Tullahoma Republican Sen. Janice Bowling has sponsored several bills to allow cultivation, sale and use of medical marijuana for the last several years, but none have passed out of committee.

Terry says he is not committed to sponsoring a comprehensive medical legalization bill, but if he does decide to, it will not allow for smoking, vaping, recreational use or marketing to children – similar to legislation he’s sponsored in the past.

House Speaker Cameron Sexton told Main Street Nashville that he supported Terry’s proposal for a pilot program last year, and would support something similar in the future, but he is not in favor of legalizing marijuana for recreational purposes.

Delta-8

Delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol products – a hemp-derived compound that has psychoactive and intoxicating effects, according to the FDA – are unregulated in Tennessee and remain legal to purchase, use, possess, sell and distribute.

A proposal by House Republican Leader William Lamberth last year would have limited sale of Delta-8 products to people 21 and older, established licensing and product testing requirements for retailers, and created a 5% excise tax, projected to bring in $10 million in tax revenue annually. The bill passed through 7 legislative committees, but ultimately stalled in the Senate.

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