Reefer Madness 2.0: Indiana’s “Updated” Drug Policy Would Criminalize Smokeable Hemp

Senate GOP adds last minute amendment to SB 516 that would re-criminalize the possession of CBD hemp flowers, at a time of increasing legalization and acceptance of cannabis medically and recreationally.

MARCH 17, 2019 — You win some, you lose some. Sometimes, you loose a lot. While Indiana’s General Assembly is finally considering the long verboten task of hemp legalization — the proposed legislation that aims to accomplish that has stirred up quite a controversy.

In the final moments of debate, Senate Republicans added Amendment #2 at the request of state law enforcement to Senate Bill 516, which would criminalize the possession of hemp flower as a Class C misdemeanor. At the same time, hemp flowers would only be sold to processors, which would be licensed by the Indian Hemp Advisory Committee.[1]

Hemp flowers are a product of hemp, which is a variant of the plant Cannabis sativa. Hemp is distinct from marijuana in that it contains no more than 0.3% delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (or THC), and is thus considered federally legal. Even though hemp flowers may look and smell very similar to marijuana (which at the time of this writing is legal in 10 U.S. jurisdictions), smoking or vaporizing hemp flowers will not get you high. Not even close.

There are many ways that smokable hemp can be used—from using portable vaporizers, to glass pieces, like this bowl pictured above.

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash.

Why do people smoke hemp?

Unlike most marijuana strains, hemp strains often contain high levels of cannabidiol, or CBD, which is one of the many cannabinoids that are found in the Cannabis sativa plant. CBD is rapidly gaining in popularity as a way to combat to a wide variety of health issues, from epilepsy, chronic pain, inflammation, PTSD, anxiety, Crohn’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and opioid withdrawal, to name a few.[2]

CBD edibles like these clear gummies can easily be ordered online, sold by a variety of resellers.

Photo by Dima Sergiyenko

As they contain less than the legal amount of THC, CBD products can be bought online with ease, and are no different than any other health supplement or food product that you might have delivered to your home. CBD can be found in a variety of products, ranging from tinctures, topicals, edibles, and yes, smokeable flowers.

All of this is not to say that CBD will magically cure a specific ailment that an individual may have. Rather, it can help manage their pain and significantly improve their quality of life.

Is smoking hemp effective?

According to the findings of two University of New Mexico researchers, smoking cannabis was the most effective method for patients to receive their daily dose of cannabinoids.[3] This is due to how fast our lungs processes cannabis smoke and vapor we inhale, compared to if we are ingesting cannabis-infused edibles, which have to make their way through the digestive system and take significantly longer for us to feel their effects.

Because CBD doesn’t have a psychedelic effect on the body, the person using it could not be as aware of its effect compared to using cannabis with THC in it.[4]

The California Cannabis Industry Association has complied a detailed website which describes the all of the basics about cannabis and its use, from the pros and cons of the many consumption methods, to the history of cannabis preparations, and best use practices for a safe and comfortable experience.

In 2013, a research study conducted on the efficacy of cannabidiol in curbing a nicotine addition was published in the journal Addictive Behaviors. The study was conducted by Dr. CJ Morgan, a member of the Clincial Psychopharmacology Unit at the University College of London. While the results of the study’s findings are preliminary, his research does suggest that cannabidiol can be a potentially useful treatment for nicotine addiction.

Over the treatment week, placebo treated smokers showed no differences in number of cigarettes smoked. In contrast, those treated with CBD significantly reduced the number of cigarettes smoked by ~40% during treatment.[5]

CBD hemp is distinct from marijuana in that it contains no more than 0.3% delta-9-THC and is thus considered federally legal. Pending legislation in Indiana would change that. Photo by Get Budding on Unsplash

What’s the problem?

As with almost anything in this world, there is always the potential for individuals and entities to break the law. While there may be resellers in Indiana that package and sell illegal marijuana claiming it is only “CBD hemp,” that is not a good enough reason alone to re-criminalize the product, especially considering how these products can be purchased legallyonline from a wide variety of resellers, delivered to your home by USPS.

Legal smokeable hemp products are widely available across Europe, just like these hemp flowers from Switzerland.

Photo by Dima Sergiyenko

On my extensive travels around the world, I have visited a variety of cannabis markets, from recreationally legal facilities in Oregon, California, and Colorado — to underground consumption lounges in Barcelona and Switzerland. Although Marijuana high in THC may be a lot harder to come by in Europe than in the U.S., CBD hemp flowers are available in many countries, like Poland, Switzerland, and Italy. If these socially-conservative societies deem smokeable hemp products legitimate, then why can’t we do that here in Indiana?

The problem is not so much the lack of access to CBD hemp flowers or any CBD products in general. Rather, it is the ongoing propaganda and false narrative that “old-school” politicians and state agencies are pushing. Re-criminalizing the possession and sale of smokable hemp in Indiana would be a step in the opposite direction, considering how far the American public’s opinion on cannabis use and legalization has progressed.

Specifically, a November 2018 survey conducted by Old National Bank/Ball State University found that 42 percent of Hoosiers said marijuana should only be legal for medical use, while 39 percent said marijuana should be legal for recreational use. Only 16 percent of the respondants said marijuana should remain illegal to use and possess.[6]

So, what can be done?

Sitting on the sidelines is not one of them. If we want to have a forward-thinking drug policy for the 21st century, we are going to have to fight for it. As this year progresses, an ever growing number of jurisdictions around the world are actively looking at changing the legality of cannabis. In 2019, as many as nine U.S. states are considering the legalization of recreational marijuana, including large markets such as Illinois, New Jersey, and New York.[7] We cannot fall back to the days of Reefer Madness, amid the past misconceptions and false information that the public was taught about what cannabis is and what it can do. We cannot let our politicians to do so, either. So what is it that we can do?

Organize. There are several great organizations that are fighting for the legalization of marijuana on both the state and federal levels, including the Marijuana Policy Project and the National Organization for Marijuana Legalization (NORML), which has three chapters here in Indiana.

Educate. If we wish to defeat the stigma surrounding cannabis, then we need to educate ourselves on everything regarding cannabis — from how cannabis is grown and produced, to how cannabinoids bind to receptors in our own body’s endocannabinoid system. Being educated about the effects of cannabis can also help our families, friends, and neighbors who suffer from a large number of ailments that cannabis has been shown to help.[8]

This sparkling cranberry-flavored cannabis-infused beverage from California contains 10mg THC and 10mg CBD.

Photo by Dima Sergiyenko

Contact. How can our legislators know that we want to see a foreward-thinking drug policy that doesn’t criminalize cannabis if we don’t ever reach out to them? You might not be reaching out to them, but you’d better believe the state police agencies and attorneys are. While the times are changing, when it comes to cannabis legalization — they’re not on the same side of the political spectrum, at least not yet.

So, what‘s next?

Even in 2019, there are not too many politicians in Indiana who have the political courage to speak out in favor of legalized marijuana. An outspoken advocate of recreatonal marijuana in Indiana is State Representative Jim Lucas (R-Seymor), who has filed several bills aimed at legalizing medical marijuana. in the summer of 2018, he even traveled to Colorado to try marijuana where it is legal and said he had “the best night’s sleep I ever had.”

“Prohibition doesn’t work and cannabis hasn’t killed people. We’re at 32 states that have legalized it. Not one state has rescinded it. They’ve all expanded their programs. Some have even leaped into recreational cannabis, because the horror stories simply aren’t there.” — Jim Lucas, State Representative.[9]

I have contacted Jim Lucas’ office in Indianapolis about the pending legislation that would criminalize smokeable hemp. I have been told by his staff that Representative Lucas is aware of the language placed in SB 516 and that he is opposed to it, viewing it as a step in the opposite direction in spite of everything that his office has been working towards.

As of March 5, 2019, SB 516 has been referred to the House Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development.[10] The House must pass the bill through its own committee process, which may well amend the language as it stands right now. It remains to be seen whether smokeable CBD hemp flowers will be re-criminalized as the prohibitionist mindset attempts to rule the day for the foreseeable future in Indiana.