North Carolina Governor Says Marijuana Legalization Can Address Public Health Risks In Unregulated Intoxicating Hemp Market

The governor of North Carolina is reiterating his support for legalizing
marijuana, stressing the need to create a regulated cannabis program to
mitigate the risks associated with products in the intoxicating hemp market.

“Today, all across North Carolina, there are unregulated THC products that
are intoxicating available for purchase,” Gov. Josh Stein (D) said in a
video posted on X on Wednesday, referencing consumable hemp products sold
at retailers with little oversight or quality control standards.

“All you have to do is just walk into any vape shop and you’ll see there is
no legal minimum age to purchase these products, which means that kids are
able to and are buying them without any enforceable labeling requirements,”
he said. “Adults are using them recreationally without having any idea
what’s in them or how much THC there is.”

“Our state’s unregulated cannabis market is the Wild West, and it is crying
out for order,” the governor said, adding that’s the reason he signed an
executive order last week creating a bipartisan commission to study
cannabis legalization in hopes of moving the GOP-controlled legislature to
act on reform.

“This group will be tasked with recommending a comprehensive approach to
regulate cannabis sales here in North Carolina,” he said. “They will study
best practices and learn from other states to develop a system that
protects our youth, allows adult sales, ensures public safety, promotes
public health, supports North Carolina agriculture, expunges past
convictions of simple THC possession and invests the revenues and resources
for addiction, mental health and drugged-driving detection.”

The newly formed Advisory Council on Cannabis will be tasked with making
recommendations to protect young people from intoxicating THC products
while legalizing adult use in North Carolina.

Let’s get this right. pic.twitter.com/rssf2uHbta

— Governor Josh Stein (@NC_Governor) June 11, 2025

“I know we can get this right. Let’s create a safe, legal market for adults
that protects North Carolina’s children,” Stein said.

The North Carolina Advisory Council on Cannabis that the governor convened
will be comprised of up to 30 members, including lawmakers, law enforcement
officials, agriculture industry stakeholders, health experts, tribal
representatives, advocates and others to explore possible regulatory models
for adult-use marijuana and hemp.

The order says there’s a need for reform because the “current lack of
regulation, including age, potency, and purity limitations, poses a threat
to all North Carolinians, particularly our youth.” And “rather than
allowing this unsafe and unregulated market to continue, smart and balanced
regulation presents an opportunity not only to protect the health and
well-being of our people, but also to generate revenue that can benefit our
state.”

The panel will be required to hold its first meeting in July and then
convene at least every other month through December 2026. Members will be
tasked with developing and submitting initial recommendations on a
“comprehensive cannabis policy, including any proposed legislation” to the
governor by May 15, 2026. Final recommendations will be due by December 31,
2026.

Rather than sticking to the status quo, the governor has emphasized that
the state should move to legalize marijuana for adults 21 and older. That
would represent a significant policy change for North Carolina, which is
one of the rare remaining examples of a state without a comprehensive
medical cannabis program.

During his time as the state’s attorney general, Stein led a separate task
force under then-Gov. Roy Cooper (D) that examined racial injustice issues
and ultimately recommended decriminalizing marijuana and studying broader
legalization in response to racially disparate enforcement trends.

In recent sessions, multiple limited medical marijuana legalization bills
advanced through the Senate, only to stall out in the House.

But Stein is making the case that moving forward on comprehensive
recreational reform would help avoid issues that other states have
experienced transitioning from medical to adult-use marijuana markets.

That position might put one of the advisory council’s appointed members,
Sen. Bill Rabon (R), in an awkward place, as the senator has long
championed bipartisan medical marijuana legalization legislation and
insisted it should not be viewed as a step toward adult-use legalization.

Meanwhile, in the House, Rep. Aisha Dew (D) filed a bill in April that
would legalize medical marijuana for patients with a variety of specified
conditions, including cancer, epilepsy, HIV/AIDS, Parkinson’s disease,
PTSD, end-of-life care and other serious ailments.

The North Carolina Compassionate Care Act is considerably more detailed
than a separate Democrat-led medical cannabis bill introduced earlier that
month that would allow access only for patients enrolled in a “registered
research study.”

Advocates had been awaiting House introduction of a comprehensive bill,
especially since Senate President Phil Berger (R) said his chamber is deferring
to the House to move first on medical marijuana reform this session.

Two other measures introduced so far this session would legalize cannabis
in North Carolina. In the Senate, S350 would create medical and adult-use
marijuana systems, while H413 in the House would legalize only recreational
marijuana.


*— Marijuana Moment is tracking hundreds of cannabis, psychedelics and drug
policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon
supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps,
charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.*


*Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on
Patreon to get access. —*

House Speaker Destin Hall (R) said in early March that Republicans in his
chamber could be willing to consider medical marijuana legalization this
session. But he didn’t indicate any forthcoming House bills, instead
suggesting legislation would come from the Senate.

Voters, for their part, seem to be on board with cannabis reform. A poll
published in February found that 71 percent of likely voters in North
Carolina support legalizing medical marijuana in the state, with majorities
across party lines and in every surveyed demographic—aside from people over
the age of 80—in favor.

Former House Speaker Tim Moore (R) said last year that while he personally
supports legalizing medical marijuana, there is an informal rule in the
chamber that at least 37 GOP members must back any given bill in order to
bring it to the floor.

The current House speaker, Hall, has in the past voiced opposition to
medical cannabis reform.

Former House Majority Leader John Bell (R) said in 2023 that while there
were “still discussions going on” about medical marijuana legislation, he
was “very sure you won’t see that bill move” due to insufficient support
among Republicans. He said that was “unfortunately” the case.

An Indian tribe in North Carolina launched the state’s first medical
marijuana dispensary last April—despite the protests of certain Republican
congressional lawmakers. More than a week after legal marijuana sales
kicked off to all adults at The Great Smoky Cannabis Co. in Cherokee last
year, thousands from across the region made purchases.

Ohio Legislature Can Make Only Limited Changes To Marijuana Law Approved By
Voters, Legal Scholar Argues

*Photo courtesy of Philip Steffan.*

The post North Carolina Governor Says Marijuana Legalization Can Address
Public Health Risks In Unregulated Intoxicating Hemp Market appeared first
on Marijuana Moment.