I’ve been watching North Carolina’s cannabis policy for years, and honestly, it’s getting embarrassing. While our neighbors cash in on regulated cannabis markets, we’re stuck with the worst of both worlds: all the problems of prohibition AND all the problems of an unregulated market.
Virginia projects $376 million in cannabis tax revenue by 2031. Meanwhile, North Carolina has a $500 million hemp market with zero age restrictions, no safety testing, and no tax revenue. We’re literally watching our neighbors get rich while we fumble around in policy purgatory.
North Carolina: Stubbornly Behind the Times
Let me paint you a picture of just how isolated we’ve become. Only 11 states lack a comprehensive medical cannabis program, and North Carolina sits alongside conservative holdouts like Idaho and Kansas. This isn’t the company you want to keep when you’re trying to position yourself as an innovative, forward-thinking state.
The numbers are staggering. Legal cannabis markets generated $25 billion nationwide, with $4.4 billion collected in 2024 alone. California pulled in over $1 billion. Illinois generated $578 million and reinvested $45 million in communities harmed by prohibition.
And the kicker? 62% of North Carolinians support adult-use legalization, with 95% backing some form of legal access. This isn’t a divided public—it’s overwhelming support being completely ignored.
The Chaos We’ve Created
Want to see what happens when politicians ignore reality? Look no further than North Carolina’s “hemp” market.
Picture a 16-year-old walking into a Charlotte gas station and buying delta-8 THC gummies. No ID check. No age verification. No clue what’s actually in the product. This isn’t hypothetical—it’s happening every day across our state.
Our hemp industry operates with virtually no oversight, creating exactly the kind of unregulated chaos that cannabis opponents always warned about. Emergency department visits for kids who’ve consumed THC shot up 600% since 2020. No testing requirements exist for contaminants or potency.
Governor Josh Stein aptly called it “the wild west”. We’ve achieved the impossible: none of the benefits of regulation (tax revenue, quality control, age restrictions) and none of the benefits of prohibition (actually keeping intoxicating substances away from kids).
Why Our Votes Don’t Matter
So why can’t we fix this obvious mess? The answer lies in North Carolina’s broken political system.
Despite nearly balanced voter registration—35% unaffiliated, 34% Democratic, 30% Republican—Republicans control 71 House seats and 30 Senate seats.
How does this math work? Gerrymandering. Republicans hold 71 House seats despite winning only 52% in recent statewide votes. Prison gerrymandering makes it worse, inflating rural Republican districts while diluting urban Democratic votes.
The result? Cannabis policy supported by 95% of voters gets blocked by a legislature that doesn’t represent what people actually want.
A Legislative Circus
When bills do get introduced, we can’t seem to coordinate. This year’s lineup includes House Bill 1011, a comprehensive medical program sponsored entirely by Democrats—giving it zero chance in the GOP House.
Then there’s House Bill 984, which would help maybe 3,000-5,000 research participants compared to the 100,000+ who’d qualify under a real medical program. We’ve also got House Bill 413 proposing full legalization.
It’s legislative chaos. The Compassionate Care Act has passed the Senate three times since 2022 but keeps dying in the House. We can’t even pass medical cannabis with 71% voter support, including 62% of very conservative voters.
Missing Out While Neighbors Profit
Our neighbors aren’t just talking—they’re acting and profiting.
Virginia’s proposed market would direct revenue toward community reinvestment (65%), substance abuse programs (25%), pre-K education (7.5%), and public health initiatives (2.5%). Even conservative neighbors are moving. Tennessee pursued medical cannabis legislation, and South Carolina’s Compassionate Care Act has bipartisan voter support.
What’s North Carolina doing? Arguing about research programs while missing out on jobs, agricultural opportunities, and the tax revenue that comes with smart policy.
A Potential Way Forward
Governor Stein seems to recognize the urgency. His June 2025 executive order creating the Advisory Council on Cannabis represents the most serious attempt yet to break legislative gridlock.
The 30-member council includes law enforcement, legislators, public health experts, and agricultural representatives. They’re tasked with delivering recommendations by December 2026 on youth protection, tax structures, and criminal justice reform.
This approach is politically smart. By building a bipartisan coalition and grounding recommendations in public health data, Stein is trying to create the consensus that purely legislative efforts have failed to achieve. The council’s focus on age restrictions, product testing, and child-resistant packaging directly addresses our hemp market problems.
Time for North Carolina to Catch Up
Every year we delay means more patients suffering without legal medical access. More parents worrying about unregulated products their kids can easily buy. More farmers missing opportunities while tobacco continues declining.
The 2024 elections broke the Republican supermajority, giving Governor Stein’s vetoes real power. The Advisory Council could provide political cover for reluctant legislators.
But how much longer can this continue? North Carolina built its reputation on research, innovation, and forward thinking. Yet on cannabis policy, we’re stuck in the past while our neighbors plan smart investments in education, community programs, and public health.
As Governor Stein said: “Smart regulation could protect public health while generating revenue for critical services.” The only thing stopping us is a political system more interested in ideology than solving problems.
When the hell will North Carolina legalize cannabis? When enough voters decide they’re tired of being embarrassed by their representatives and demand better.