The Sportsman’s Paradise is hell for cannabis connoisseurs. The state carries severe penalties, especially for distribution and cultivation. You do not want to try your inner superhero in Louisiana if you love your freedom.
The following passages will elaborate on the marijuana and CBD laws of Louisiana.
Marijuana in Louisiana
The Child of the Mississippi doesn’t allow you to consume weed and classifies the crop as a Schedule I(C) hallucinogenic substance. Carrying even a small amount can put you behind bars for 15 days with a $300 fine, and half an ounce possession is sufficient for 6-months incarceration. However, you’re done if an intent to distribute or cultivate weed in Louisiana is established. It’s because any amount can put you away for decades.
Moreover, the state’s extreme marijuana penalties are also racially disproportionate. As per the American Civil Liberties Union, despite whites and blacks consuming marijuana at an almost identical rate, the latter is 3.1 times more at risk for a marijuana possession arrest.
Medical Marijuana
It’s almost unbelievable that Louisiana passed its medical marijuana law in 1991, but never came around implementing it. The approval of Act 261 in 2015 allowed physicians in Louisiana to recommend medicinal cannabis to qualified patients for the following conditions:
- Cachexia
- Autism
- Crohn’s disease
- Epilepsy
- Cancer
- HIV/AIDS
- Intractable pain
- Glaucoma
- Multiple sclerosis
- Parkinson’s disease
- Muscular dystrophy
- PTSD
- Intense muscle spasms
- Spasticity
The same year also witnessed Gov. Bobby Jindal signing House Bill 149 about the structure of dispensing medical marijuana. However, even in 2019, there’s no state-governed program up and running, and patients still await easy access to the products.
As of now, the Department of Agriculture and Forestry and the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy are regulating the strictly-limited program. However, there are no authorized autonomous testing laboratories. Still, the state, which only allows non-smokable consumption earned $5 million in medical sales in 2018, while the projection is an ambitious $44 million for the year 2022.
CBD Oil Laws in Louisiana
You right to use CBD in Louisiana is protected by the 2018 Farm Bill. However, cultivating the crop is still illegal statewide, and a House Bill (1085) to do so is awaiting Senate Agriculture’s approval since 2016.
However, the federal enactment of Agriculture Improvement Act is expected to swift the proceedings, and talks are already in motion to legalize hemp in the April 2019 Louisiana legislative session.
Conclusion
Adult-use cannabis is strictly banned in Louisiana, and carrying even a small amount can imprison you. However, your life is almost done if an intent to distribute or cultivate cannabis is established since any quantity can put you away for decades. The Pelican State passed its medical marijuana law in 1991 but never implemented a functioning system. Even in 2019, there’s no state-governed program up and running, and patients still await proper medicinal access. Lastly, the Sugar State doesn’t have a hemp program either, and plantation is banned as of now.
Still, the state, which only allows non-smokable consumption earned $5 million in medical sales in 2018.
