The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and President Joe Biden’s administration are taking steps to downgrade marijuana from a Schedule I controlled substance to Schedule III.
This change means a softening in the way federal authorities view marijuana, a drug that has already been legalized in some form in most states.
With no legal recreational or medical use, Indiana is an outlier among Midwestern states when it comes to marijuana. It’s a hot topic, but it won’t be discussed by Indiana lawmakers during upcoming interim committee meetings.
Marijuana has been left off the agenda, although the federal push to ease restrictions and classification of marijuana indicates that legalization could be on the horizon.
State lawmakers have studied marijuana in previous committees, but many Republican officials have declined to pursue legalization, whether for medical or recreational purposes, until more federal guidance is issued. Gov. Eric Holcomb has refused to support legalization as long as marijuana remains illegal at the federal level. But recent years have seen more bipartisan momentum on the issue, and Hoosiers continue to favor marijuana legalization.
The 2023 Hoosier Poll conducted by Ball State University shows that 54.2% of respondents believe marijuana should be legal for recreational and medical use, and 32.2% support legalization for medical use only. Only 9.8% of respondents stated that it should not be legal for any use.
“The findings are similar to last year in that Americans and Hoosiers have dramatically changed their attitudes toward marijuana,” said Chad Kinsella, director of the Bowen Center for Public Affairs and Ball professor of political science. State. “Many states have recently legalized marijuana, including neighboring states like Ohio in 2023.”
Complicating the matter, Indiana has no provisions for voter access to the ballot. Not even a million signatures would be enough to put the question of whether marijuana should be legal in any form in Indiana on the ballot. Therefore, we have to rely on state legislators to make a decision, which they have not done because any legalization legislation dies quickly during the session.
Indiana retailers already sell marijuana-related products, such as Delta-8 and CBD. The federal government is signaling the potential for decriminalization, if not legalization, of marijuana. Indiana has been on the fence on the issue for quite some time. This summer would be a perfect opportunity for Indiana lawmakers to hear testimony and debate legalization ahead of the 2025 session.
Medicaid and AI are certainly valuable topics for upcoming study committees. Marijuana is also an issue that needs to be addressed. If lawmakers don’t want to deal with the elephant in the room, then they should consider provisions that allow Hoosiers to vote on legalization.
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