Kentucky
Is weed legal in Kentucky?
Currently, cannabis is not legal for medical or adult-use purposes in the state of Kentucky. However, Kentucky residents may legally purchase and possess hemp-derived CBD products with no more than 0.3% THC.
Legislation history
Long before President Richard Nixon’s war on drugs, Kentucky was the largest source of hemp crops in the continental United States. The state began hemp cultivation in 1775 and remained a primary source of the plant well into the 20th century.
A wave of anti-cannabis propaganda led to the eradication of hemp in the state in the late 1930s, despite a brief reprieve in the 1940s when Kentucky farmers were encouraged to grow hemp to prevent the import of jute from Asia.
Cannabis remained illegal in Kentucky until 2014, when hemp cultivation was permitted by the passage of the 2014 Farm Bill. The same year, Gov. Steve Beshear signed SB 124, a law that allowed patients to use non-intoxicating cannabidiol (CBD) products with a physician’s written order.
In 2017, Kentucky lawmakers passed HB 333, which broadly legalized the consumption and retail sale of hemp and hemp-derived CBD products that contain 0.3% THC or less.
