The history of marijuana in the past 50 years has been nothing short of radical. From 1969 to 2023, the percentage of Americans who support legalization jumped from 12% to 70%. During this same timeframe, recreational use of marijuana has been extended to 25 states and encompasses over half of the US population. Traditionally, every state has a unique interpretation of the legal limits. For example, Washington allows for 1 ounce of ‘usable marijuana’. This means 72 ounces for liquid marijuana, 16 ounces of concentrate, or 7 grams of edibles.
Aside from full legalization, there are several more steps who are on their way to legalize recreational marijuana. Hawaii, New Hampshire, and North Dakota have all decriminalized marijuana and legalized medical marijuana. Another 16 states haven’t decriminalized it but have permitted legal use via prescription. The states of Louisiana, Mississippi, and North Carolina have also decriminalized it without any medicinal uses permitted.
However, there are still 4 holdouts who have not legalized recreational use, legalized medicinal use, or even decriminalized it yet. These are the states of Kansas, South Carolina, Wyoming, and Idaho, with the latter being the most stringent. In Idaho, possession of marijuana paraphernalia is a misdemeanor that can get you up to 1 year in prison and a $1,000 maximum fine. If you are instead deemed to be distributing marijuana, it is now a felony with 9 years in prison and a maximum fine of $30,000.
While legal access is varying depending on your geographic location, many states with no legal access saw more pre-employment drug tests return positive for marijuana. This means that the number of marijuana users is growing across the US. Some pro-marijuana states are even passing legislation to prevent pre-employment drug tests from including marijuana. While it’s uncertain how the next 50 years will look for marijuana, one thing is for certain. Be on the lookout for marijuana making an impact on your workplace.
Source: US Drug Test Centers
