Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signs intoxicating hemp ban, new marijuana regulations into law

OG article by Megan Henry

December 22, 2025

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed Senate Bill 56 into law on December 19, 2025, enacting a ban on intoxicating hemp products and introducing modifications to the state's voter-approved recreational marijuana regulations. The legislation, effective in 90 days, aligns with recent federal changes by prohibiting the sale of intoxicating hemp outside licensed marijuana dispensaries and banning products exceeding 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container. DeWine, who has advocated for this ban for nearly two years, issued a line-item veto on a provision that would have permitted the sale of five-milligram THC-infused beverages until December 31, 2026, stating it would create consumer confusion and non-conformity with federal law. He emphasized stopping such sales immediately to support public policy.

On the marijuana front, the bill lowers THC limits in adult-use extracts from 90% to 70%, caps flower THC at 35%, and bans smoking in most public spaces. It eliminates protections against discrimination in housing, employment, and organ donation, allows police probable cause for traffic stops based on known marijuana use, and criminalizes possessing marijuana outside original packaging or bringing legally purchased marijuana from another state into Ohio. Drivers must store marijuana in the trunk. The bill allocates 36% of adult-use marijuana revenue to municipalities with dispensaries, maintains a 10% tax rate, preserves home grow limits at six plants per adult and 12 per residence, and caps dispensaries at 400.

Industry concerns highlight potential job losses and business closures due to the hemp ban. Opponents, including Ohioans for Cannabis Choice, plan a referendum, arguing the bill defies voter will by re-criminalizing hemp and marijuana while impacting thousands of workers and small businesses.