In simple words: yeah, CBD is legal in the State of Kentucky. In 2017, the Kentucky legislators passed a bill legalizing CBD, as long as it has less than 0.3% THC and is derived from industrial hemp. In 2018, an initiative was started, working on legalizing the use of marijuana for medicinal applications. Kentucky has been planting hemp legally since 2014.
CBD Oil In The Bluegrass State
With a bill passed in Kentucky in 2014, hemp and marijuana were distinguished as two different plants, separating marijuana as illegal, and hemp as legal. The growing of industrial hemp started soon after, and Kentuckians started using CBD oil with a doctor’s prescription. It was in 2017 when House Bill 333 took effect, changing the way CBD oil is prescribed, making it legal and allowed to anyone as long as it is hemp-derived and has less than 0.3% THC.
CBD and Hemp – the essentials
Hemp has been used by people since ancient times, for the production of textile, clothes, fiber and ropes, food and as a remedy. The use of hemp in the USA dates a long way, with native tribes using the smokes of burning hemp seeds to “call upon” visions and as a medicinal herb. When European people can to the New World, they began sowing hemp as a crop for the production of ropes, paper, and textiles. Among the most avid supporters and growers of hemp were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, James Madison, and James Monroe.
Back in the day, before the American Civil War, the state of Kentucky was one of the largest hemp-producing states in the Union, with hemp plantations worked by slaves. Due to the rise of industrial products such as nylon, hemp was put on the Marijuana Tax Act, and later completely banned from commercial growing.
Much later, in 2014, President Obama signed the 2014 Farm Bill, separating the hemp and marijuana, thus allowing the planting of hemp as a commercial and research crop in the USA. With this bill, the state of Kentucky was given a chance to bring back their status as one of the largest hemp producers in the States.
Today there are many strains that are in-between the classic hemp and classic marijuana definitions, as these have about 1:1 THC vs. CBD ratio and have great medicinal effects. Here I bring you two of these which are favored by the users of medicinal marijuana.
- CBD Mango Haze is a strain made by CBD Crew in 2013. This strain produces buds that have traits from all its ancestors, such as tropical flavors, spicy, sweet scent, and fruity flavors. It can have 1:1 up to 1:2 CBD vs. THC content and is an excellent helper for headaches, stress, eye pressure, and glaucoma, inflammation and depression. It is a sativa-dominant strain, with focused, uplifting, energy-boosting effects.
- Dancehall is a strain named after a Reggae style of music. This strain has a very mixed lineage, with traits from all its ancestors. It is primarily sativa-dominant, bringing an uplifting, happy feeling, with euphoric and energetic high. The medicinal side is very strong, and the smooth smoke that smells of flowers, the woods, and some spices brings a lot of benefits on pain, depression, stress, fatigue and helps with inflammation.
Kentucky CBD oil law
The state of Kentucky resumed the growing of hemp in 2014, after being banned for 57 years. Around this time, the state allowed the use of CBD products for people in need, but only if the CBD oil was derived from hemp and contained less than 0.3% THC. In 2017, the CBD oil was made legal for all citizens of Kentucky under the House Bill 333, with the provision that it has less than 0.3% THC and it is made from hemp.
Medical marijuana in Kentucky
While it is not yet legal for doctors in Kentucky to prescribe marijuana for treating of some severe medical conditions, there is a law in the making. On March 6, 2019, a bill was cleared in the House Judiciary Committee, voting with 16:1 in favor of allowing the medical use of marijuana.
Even though this bill, named House Bill 136, is not a law yet (it will get a chance in the 2020 legislative session), its passing into this stage means that both legislators and doctors in Kentucky are noticing the benefit medical marijuana can have for some conditions like persistent pain, nausea, epilepsy, cerebral palsy, cancer and other. According to the text of the bill, people can use oils or edibles made from marijuana, (or make them at home), but cannot smoke it.
No weed for the Corncrackers
While there is a certain degree of decriminalization for the possession of marijuana in Kentucky, anyone caught with less than 8 ounces of weed for the first time will get a misdemeanor penalty, with 45 days in prison and a $250 fine. Anything more and people are facing a felony charge with at least a year in prison and a $10,000 fine.
CBD oil purchase options
The people of Kentucky can get CBD products in several locations across the state, most notably in places like Bardstown, Owensboro, and Louisville. While there are retail stores in these cities, and several other, not every person can easily get to them and buy a good-quality CBD product.
People usually look for anything online, and the same goes for CBD oil and other CBD products. Since the law permits any Kentuckian to use CBD product with less than 0.3% THC, one can simply go online and select a manufacturer that fits the prescribed standards and place an order.
To wrap up
Since 2014, Kentuckians have started to grow hemp for different applications, and since 2017 medical patients were allowed to use CBD products derived from hemp and have less than 0.3% THC. In 2018 a law was passed allowing every Kentucky resident to use CBD-rich oil with less than 0.3% THC, and several stores were opened across the country offering these kinds of products.
However, the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes is not yet legal, even though a bill was put in motion, starting the legalization process. According to predictions, it will most likely be passed and signed in 2020. Until then, the Corncrackers will have to withhold from using weed in any form or for any purpose.
