Medical marijuana is legal in KY, but some voters may see it on their ballot. Here’s why
Medical marijuana has been legal in Kentucky since 2023, but in the election Tuesday, Nov. 5, many voters across the commonwealth will get to decide what that means for their communities.
Kentucky still needs to decide where these various medical marijuana businesses — from cultivators to dispensaries and everything in between — can open. This year, that’s largely being placed into the hands of voters at the local level.
To help Kentuckians understand what they’re being asked to vote on in these communities, here’s a deep dive into what the ballot measures mean. Regardless of the outcomes on Election Day, Kentucky will likely have a patchwork of rules around where these businesses can establish themselves.
What medical marijuana ballot measures are voters deciding?
Kentucky is preparing to launch its medical cannabis program in January, when qualified patients can apply to become cardholders.
Marijuana is still illegal at the federal level, so Kentucky must build its own, independent supply chain, from cultivators, to processors to dispensaries. To that end, the state has already begun distributing medical cannabis business licenses via a lottery. The first those lotteries was held Oct. 28 for cultivators and processors.
The decision before some voters this fall comes down to whether they will allow these businesses to set up shop in their communities, as Sam Flynn, the head of Kentucky’s Office of Medical Cannabis, explained at the lottery Monday.
“It’s important to note that this relates to the business operations alone,” Flynn said. “It does not have any impact on the ultimate cardholders and whether they can access medical cannabis and use medical cannabis at their home.”
How Kentucky cities and counties can ban cannabis businesses
Kentucky law allows municipalities and counties to “opt-out” and prohibit medical cannabis businesses from operating in their jurisdictions.
Opting-out does require communities to take action, however, either by passing ordinances or by putting the question directly before voters with referendums.
“Every jurisdiction starts from a position of being in this program and allowing medical cannabis business operations,” Flynn recently told a group of lawmakers, explaining the opt-out process.
If a local jurisdiction does not opt-out by the end of 2024, any medical cannabis businesses granted state licenses to operate in those jurisdictions will be allowed to do so. Kentucky cities and counties can decide to prohibit medical cannabis businesses in 2025 or beyond, but businesses with 2024 licenses will be grandfathered in and exempt from that ban.
Where is medical marijuana on the ballot in Kentucky?
A total of 106 Kentucky jurisdictions will be voting on medical cannabis this year. That includes 53 cities and counties, Flynn said Monday.
In some locations, voters will have the opportunity to “ticket split” because there will be ballot measures at the county and city levels. Voters in Georgetown, for example, get to vote on referendums for the city and the county.
In Bourbon County, the issue will be on the ballot at the county level, in Millersburg and in North Middletown, but not in Paris.
In Clark County, the question of cannabis operations is on the ballot, and a referendum is also on the ballot for some precincts of Woodford County.
Nicholasville voted in March via a local ordinance to opt out of allowing medical cannabis businesses. However, the city reversed itself in September when it learned that KCA Labs, a testing lab and the state’s first licensed medical cannabis business, planned to open there.
Lexington already gave the go ahead for medical cannabis businesses to set up shop here.
For a look at which Kentucky cities and counties have opted-out and which will have medical cannabis ballot questions, use the interactive maps below, courtesy of the Kentucky Office of Medical Cannabis.
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