{"id":2691,"date":"2020-12-15T16:48:10","date_gmt":"2020-12-15T21:48:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannachronicle.com\/?p=2691"},"modified":"2020-12-15T16:48:11","modified_gmt":"2020-12-15T21:48:11","slug":"many-cannabis-companies-are-fighting-to-keep-homegrown-cannabis-illegal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannachronicle.com\/2020\/12\/15\/many-cannabis-companies-are-fighting-to-keep-homegrown-cannabis-illegal\/","title":{"rendered":"Many Cannabis Companies Are Fighting to Keep Homegrown Cannabis Illegal"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Shouldn’t home grown cannabis be legal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is the question facing today\u2019s consumers of cannabis and cannabis-based products, whether it be for personal or medicinal use. With the incremental rise in the number of states making it legal to grow relatively small amounts for personal consumption, the number of closet grow-rooms is going to increase, and not just in states where there are no legal statutes prohibiting personal cultivation. There are currently only twelve U.S. states where it is legal to grow and possess limited amounts of flower, and sixteen states (and Puerto Rico) that have legalized medical cannabis but still prohibit home grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the perspective of the consumer, patients who have a valid need for consuming THC to alleviate the symptoms of Alzheimer\u2019s, Crohn\u2019s Disease, and the side effects of cancer treatment, the ability to grow their own supply legally helps to lift the financial burden of health care costs associated with those and other conditions. Indeed, there are many people who have chosen to ignore the state bans on possession and personal cultivation because they believe the laws are unjust and their need for the physical and mental relief that cannabis provides overrides their state\u2019s belief on what should be available to people afflicted with such debilitating ailments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the states that currently allow home grow however, the number of plants one is allowed to possess is arbitrary and depends solely on the number that was input into the bill before it was passed in any particular state. In Montana for instance, a medical cannabis patient may only possess four mature plants and four seedlings, whereas in Rhode Island, that number is twelve adult plants and twelve seedlings. It is also important to note that these numbers will change as new laws are introduced, and the current possibility of the federal government decriminalizing cannabis will change the way state lawmakers approach this subject.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Members of the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission have often stated that the number of plants could be determined by the needs of the patient or the recommendation of the prescribing physician in each case. To date, that parameter for determining how many plants any one person can possess is not being used in current legislation but may be reconsidered by state governments once federal prohibition is eliminated. In Massachusetts where the commission resides, a qualified medical patient may legally have up to six mature plants per person and twelve per household, if there is another qualified patient residing in the same dwelling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There has been some controversy concerning corporate influence in states like New York and New Jersey where medical cannabis is legal, but cultivation by non-licensed individuals is banned. Consider the now infamous 29-page memo<\/span><\/strong><\/a> sent to Governor Cuomo\u2019s office by the New York Medical Cannabis Industry association (NYMCIA). The organization\u2019s current board includes leadership from the state-limited dispensary license holders in New York including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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