States With Legal Weed Outnumber Those Without

One of the most important distinctions in state laws on marijuana focuses on recreational and medical use. Accepted medical marijuana laws provide a legal exception for citizens smoking marijuana (or consuming via another method) for medical purposes.

Medical weed laws vary widely, with some permitting home cultivation of marijuana plants, typically with a limit ranging up to six plants per patient or household. However, some states, like South Carolina or Texas, may only allow concentrated cannabis oil high in CBD or other byproducts of the cannabis plant.

Recreational cannabis state laws also vary from universal adult-use marijuana legalization to strong legalized medical marijuana legislation with a clear path to surpass accepted medical use.

Revision of state law by ballot measure can take a strong medical program to a legalized marijuana state in a short time. For example, Ohio voters recently passed Section 3780 on December 7, 2023, to become the most recent state where it is legal to grow, cultivate, sell and consume marijuana.