Residents in North Carolina, one of only 10 remaining states with no legal cannabis access, spent about $3 billion on illicit marijuana in 2022, according to a recently released state report commissioned by Gov. Josh Stein.
That’s the second-largest illicit market in the country, according to a draft report from the state Advisory Council on Cannabis, which is also urging state lawmakers respond by legalizing adult-use cannabis and hemp access.
“Our state’s unregulated cannabis market is the Wild West and is crying for order,” Stein said in an April 2 news release.
“Let’s protect our kids and create a safe, legal, and well-regulated market for adults.”
How large is the U.S. illicit cannabis market?
Citing data from Cannra, the Cannabis Regulators Association, Texas has the country’s largest illicit market at $6.4 billion in annual unregulated sales, as per the report.
Notably, the report does not claim that legalization will eliminate the illicit market.
However, legalization and regulation could capture as much as 60% of the illicit-market activity, the report said.
States with adult-use programs generate between $33 million and $552 million in annual tax revenue, according to the report.
Driving regulatory clarity for hemp and cannabis
To prioritize consumer safety, the council recommended implementing strict market safeguards, including:
- Mandating low-THC product alternatives
- Requiring clear health warnings
- Establishing product recall authority
- Ensuring consumers can access proper medical consultations
The push for legalization also attempts to rein in the state’s hemp sector. Currently, intoxicating hemp products such as drinks, gummies and vapes are widely available at gas stations and convenience stores.
Because North Carolina lacks comprehensive state-level oversight, minors can easily purchase intoxicating hemp products.
The final report is due by December.
Will North Carolina legalize cannabis?
It’s unclear how persuasive the report’s findings will be with the Republican-controlled state Legislature, where legalization pushes have been introduced over the past few years only to go nowhere.
Two top Republicans, who control key committees that would hear a legalization bill, both dismissed the report’s findings and conclusion, according to the Raleigh News & Observer.
“We have people in involuntary commitment dealing with (THC),” state Sen. Jim Burgin, who chairs two committees in the Legislature, told the newspaper.
“We are talking about spending money on rural health care and trying to make people healthier,” he said. “And at the same time, we have a commission that’s recommending legalization of marijuana.”
