For many years, marijuana was considered an actual taboo in Florida. Miami Vice, anyone?
Throughout the 20th century, the state played a leading role in America’s fractured rendezvous with Mary Jane. However, such was the might of marijuana in the black market that by the late ‘80s it became the second-biggest Florida crop after citrus fruit raking close to $400 million per year.
The following passages will elaborate on the marijuana and CBD laws of Florida.
Marijuana in Florida
The Florida of 2019 still doesn’t allow you to consume marijuana recreationally and possession of 20 grams is enough for 12-months imprisonment.
However, courtesy of years of pro-cannabis campaigns the Florida Cannabis Act became a reality. The Act proposed:
- Lawful possession of up to 1 oz. of cannabis by Floridians at least 21 years old.
- Private cultivation of six cannabis plants per household for personal consumption.
- Regulations to grow, retail, and manufacture marijuana products.
Nonetheless, due to insufficient valid signatures, the Act was not on the Florida ballot as an initiated constitutional amendment in November 2018. Two citizen unions have already put petitions in motion to place recreational weed on the 2020 ballot.
Medical Marijuana
The sanctioning of ‘Amendment 2’ in 2016 legalized the medicinal use of cannabis. Only vaporized oils, sprays, edibles, and tinctures containing 0.8% or less of THC and more than 10% of CBD are allowed. The exception of a higher THC dosage is only made for terminally ill patients.
In mid-2018, the state ban on smoking medicinal pot was ruled unconstitutional by a Leon County circuit court judge. Though, the decision is being appealed by the Department of Health.
14 facilities in Florida are dispensing medical marijuana to about 136,000 registered patients. The southeasternmost U.S. state earned $456 million in medical sales in 2018 and is projected to make a thumping $1.7 billion by 2022.
CBD Oil Laws in Florida
The approval of SB 1726 in 2017 sanctioned industrial hemp projects across the state at designated universities. Once, the work at educational institutes concluded, three cities were finalized for growing hemp in 2019. Namely:
- Hague, North-central Florida
- Quincy, panhandle area
- Homestead, South Florida
The local farmers believe that it may well take a few years to find a cultivar that can harvest under the required 0.3% THC limit in Florida’s subtropical and tropical climate.
Conclusion
The consumption of adult-use marijuana is banned in Florida, and possessing 20 grams of these herbs will incarcerate you for a year. Cannabis activists are advocating for the approval of the Florida Cannabis Act for many years. However, the Act was not on the 2018 Florida ballot as an initiated constitutional amendment.
Still, medical marijuana is completely legal in the Sunshine State, and the dispensary system serves about 136,000 registered patients. The state is primed to earn a walloping $1.7 billion in medical sales by 2022. Lastly, the enactment of Senate Bill 1726 in 2017 initiated statewide industrial hemp projects with cultivation in three cities starting in 2019.
