COLOMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s new bill doubles the amount of THC a driver can have in his system.
Recreational marijuana is currently widely available to adults in Ohio, but state Sen. Nathan Manning (R-North Ridgeville) said the law is outdated and has negative effects on innocent drivers.
“Marijuana is legal whether you like it or not,” said the former Republican prosecutor. “I don’t want to punish people for doing something legal.”
In November 2023, voters overwhelmingly passed Issue 2. This allowed adults over the age of 21 to smoke, steam and ingest weeds. Individual Ohio states can grow up to 12 plants per household. The clinic was able to sell recreational services from August 6th, 2024.
“Marijuana users could be convicted of an OVI, even if they weren’t affected,” Manning continued, referring to the crime of operating a disabled vehicle.
The psychoactive substance of cannabis, THC can stay in your system for weeks without affecting you. Sharona Hoffman, professor of medicine law at Case Western Reserve University, explained that drug testing is not always practical at the timing. They can show inactive metabolites, but it may not accurately indicate the disorder.
“If you have a little marijuana in your body, you might still be able to drive safely,” Hoffman said. “So you need an expert to determine at what level you actually end up in the road.”
A study compiled by Healthline shows that cannabis can be detected.
Unless you are a “chronic heavy user”, it indicates that you are detecting blood for up to 12 hours, unless you use it frequently for 30 days. Regardless of usage, it will take 3-30 days depending on usage. Hair follicles for up to 90 days.
This is why Manning introduced Senate Bill 55. This doubles the amount of THC the driver can have in the system. He is the only sponsor of it, but many lawmakers on either side of the aisle said they would support it.
The bill changes the “self” and “evidence” criminal sums associated with THC.
In itself, in this regard, if law enforcement finds a certain amount, it automatically means that it is a violation of the law. The bill also speaks of evidentiary standards or reasoning, so if police find a certain amount, the judge can infer a violation, if not automatic.
Currently, drivers are arrested for THC twice per milliliter in the blood or 10 nanograms in the urine.
Working with medical experts, Manning proposed increasing the amount of THC to 5 nanograms of two nanograms in a person’s blood.
The bill will remove urinary count measurements for automatic violations and instead create a new evidential standard of 25 nanograms.
In English, this means that if someone has 25 nanograms of THC in their urine, the prosecutor can argue to the judge that they are drunk.
“It’s not accurate about recent use,” Manning said.
The bill also says the same evidential argument could be made for those with fewer than two nanograms in the blood.
This is not his first attempt to introduce this bill. At the final general meeting, I took up the iteration of the law. However, he proposed it in January, 10 months before recreational marijuana was legalized in November.
Related: The proposed Ohio bill will relax OVI rules for marijuana users
Law enforcement officials say this could make their work even more difficult.
“Our concern is always public safety,” Jay McDonald said in his brother’s police order. “I don’t think raising the level of marijuana permitted in the system will encourage increased public safety.”
Lou Tobin of the Association of Prosecutors added that it is difficult to determine the amount of THC that actually causes a disability for each person.
“It’s true, we don’t tolerate anyone driving while we’re drunk,” Tobin said. “We don’t tolerate anyone driving while there’s marijuana in the system.”
However, new and faster ways to determine high drivers are ongoing. Last year, Ohio lawmakers passed a bill to allow police to use rapid roadside saliva testing. But it’s not widely available – and Tobin said it would pay a price.
“We need more money to enforce,” he said. “Law enforcement agencies need to update their technology to perform improved testing of driving with marijuana disorders.”
Manning said these tests cost local or state money, so they plan to work with experts and police to ensure safety is more than cost.
“I’m sure I’ll support it, whether it’s a trooper or a local law enforcement agency, trying to find funds to make those tests available,” the Republican said. Ta.
Tobin had another idea. That’s something many lawmakers agree.
“I think using some of the (marijuana tax) funds to protect law enforcement payments and roads is a priority,” he said.
The Ohio Legislature is currently debating whether to dramatically change marijuana policy.
One of the changes is to amend the tax system.
Ohio weeds cost twice as much as Michigan, but lawmakers want it to be even more expensive
Related: Ohio Weeds cost twice as much as Michigan, but lawmakers want it to be even more expensive
Manning has also worked on other laws for many years to help eliminate low-level marijuana convictions.
His goal in this bill is to prevent innocent people from facing eggs and help ease the burden on law enforcement.
“I think law enforcement is probably seeing an increase in usage. Clearly, it’s normal that it’s legalized,” the lawmaker said. “(The police) do a really good job trying to eliminate situations where someone may be suspected of using marijuana.”
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