A Helpful Breakdown of the Legal Status by State for Cannabis Investors
Breaking into the cannabis industry can be a little intimidating to potential cannabis investors, mainly because there are so many different laws and regulations in effect. Additionally, there is a lot of in-process legislation that has the potential to change the rules. In short, there is a lot to keep up with, legally-speaking.
To give you a quick refresher, cannabis (aka marijuana) remains a Schedule I substance according to the Controlled Substance Act. On a federal level, cannabis is still completely illegal. Additionally, hemp with a THC level of more than 0.3 percent is also illegal.
However, on a state level, things operate differently. Since states are allowed to set their own rules on cannabis and CBD products, this means that the rules vary from state-to-state. To provide a little more insight on the cannabis industry and how it operates at the state level, here is a state-by-state breakdown of cannabis legality.
Legal Status of the Cannabis Industry by State
- Alabama – Medical use only (must have one of the 15 qualifying conditions)
- Alaska – Fully legal
- Arizona – Fully legal
- Arkansas – Medical use only (must have one of the 12 qualifying conditions)
- California – Fully legal
- Colorado – Fully legal
- Connecticut – Fully legal
- Delaware – Decriminalized and medical use allowed (must have a qualifying medical condition)
- District of Columbia – Fully legal
- Florida – Medical use only (must have a qualifying medical condition)
- Georgia – CBD with THC only ; approved for medical use (must be a medical cannabis oil up to 5 percent THC); decriminalized in certain cities
- Hawaii – Decriminalized and medical use allowed
- Idaho – Fully illegal
- Illinois – Fully legal
- Indiana – Fully illegal
- Iowa – CBD with THC only (must have a qualifying condition)
- Kansas – Illegal
- Kentucky – Illegal
- Louisiana – Decriminalized and medical use allowed
- Maine – Fully legal
- Maryland – Decriminalized and medical use allowed
- Massachusetts – Fully legal
- Michigan – Fully legal
- Minnesota – Decriminalized and medical use allowed
- Mississippi – CBD with THC Only (must be a medical cannabis oil up to 5 percent THC)
- Missouri – Decriminalized and medical use allowed
- Montana – Fully legal
- Nebraska – Illegal
- Nevada – Fully legal
- New Hampshire – Decriminalized and medical use allowed (must have a qualifying condition)
- New Jersey – Fully legal
- New Mexico – Fully legal
- New York – Fully legal
- North Carolina – CBD with THC Only
- North Dakota – Decriminalized and medical use allowed (must have a qualifying condition)
- Ohio – Decriminalized and medical use allowed (must have a qualifying condition)
- Oklahoma – Medical use only
- Oregon – Fully legal
- Pennsylvania – Medical use only (must have a qualifying condition)
- Rhode Island – Medical use only (must have a qualifying condition)
- South Carolina – CBD with THC Only (CBD oil exceeding 0.9 percent THC legal with medical cannabis license)
- South Dakota – Medical use only
- Tennessee – CBD with THC Only (CBD oil exceeding 0.9 percent THC legal with medical cannabis license)
- Texas – CBD with THC Only (up to 1 percent)
- Utah – Medical use only (must have a qualifying condition)
- Vermont – Fully legal
- Virginia – Fully legal
- Washington – Fully legal
- West Virginia – Illegal
- Wisconsin – CBD with THC (Must have a qualifying condition)
- Wyoming – Illegal
Considering Becoming a Cannabis Investor? Contact Elite Robotics
According to Grand View Research, the global legal market size of the cannabis industry in 2021 was $13.2B. This explains why so many different investors have come out of the woodwork to stake their claim.
There are a few main ways to get involved. Growing cannabis and being the source of the product is something that many growers and cultivators are doing. Investors can also get in on the ground floor of a shop or dispensary.
However, in our professional opinion, investing in the cannabis testing equipment side of things is a more opportune space with a ton of growth potential. This is because all hemp and cannabis growing operations require some avenue of on-site testing. Otherwise, the growing operation is going to be forced to send out samples to a third-party lab every time they want to know the THC levels of their products.
Elite Robotics has two main products as part of our Cannabots™ line. The first is a containment device that hermetically seals samples until they’re ready to be analyzed. The second product is the analyzer, which breaks down and tests cannabis samples from the containment device.
Learn more about our cannabis testing equipment or become an investor by contacting Elite Robotics at (805) 987-6217. Or send us a message directly using our contact form.