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Cannabis on American Indian reservations was historically regulated under United States federal law. However, the August 2013 issuance of the Cole Memorandum opened discussion on tribal sovereignty pertaining to cannabis legalization. [1] A clarifying memo in December 2014 stated that the federal government's non-interference policies that applied to the 50 states, would also apply to the 326 recognized American Indian reservations. [2] [1] [3] Reservations are therefore able to independently regulate cannabis possession and sale irrespective of laws in any bordering US states. [3]
The Shinnecock Indian Nation opened its first cannabis shop, called Little Beach Harvest, in November 2023. [4]
The Oglala Sioux nation legalized industrial hemp in 1998, and the family of Alex White Plume began to produce the crop from 2000–2002, but federal authorities destroyed his crops and issued him a restraining order forbidding further cultivation. [5] [3] [6]
In January 2014, the Oglala Sioux tribal council approved a proposal to hold a tribal vote to decide on legalizing marijuana on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, [7] but the council later rejected the proposal. [8]
In March 2020, members of the tribe voted to legalize medical and recreational cannabis on the reservation. [9]
In mid-2015, the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe stated their intent to begin growing cannabis on one authorized site on their reservation, and commence selling the product on January 1, 2016, following a vote of tribal authorities which decided 5–1 to legalize cannabis. Under the regulation, buyers are required to consume the product on tribal property. [10] [11]
In November 2015, the tribe burned its cannabis crop after discussions with the state and federal attorney's general indicated they were at risk for a federal raid. A representative of the tribe stated in February 2016 that the tribe would pursue legislative solutions to move forward with their cannabis project. [12]
In August 2015 the Menominee Indian Reservation in Wisconsin held a vote on proposed measures to legalize medical and/or recreational cannabis. The Menonimee are uniquely placed in the state, as the only American Indian reservation which falls only under federal law, rather than under Wisconsin Public Law 280 like all other reservations in the state, meaning that the state of Wisconsin cannot prevent legal changes within the sovereign reservation. [13] In an "advisory vote", the tribal membership voted 77% in favor of legalizing medical cannabis, and 58% in favor of legalizing recreational; the tribal Chairman stated that tribal legislators would next decide whether to move forward on the two issues. [14]
In 2016, the Navajo Nation signed its first resolution to grow industrial hemp, with the goal of adding hemp as a cash crop to their existing 70,000 acre (approx. 283 km2) farm. [15] They authorized Navajo Agricultural Products Industry in collaboration with New Mexico State University to conduct a hemp growing pilot project in 2019. [16]
In 2020, the Nation amended its criminal code to clarify the definition of cannabis versus hemp and to enhance penalties for growth, possession, and distribution of cannabis on tribal lands. [16]
In 2023, federal authorities seized over 60,000 pounds of cannabis plants from Dineh Benally, the former president of the San Juan River Farm Board, who along with business partners had been growing the crops on 400 acres of farmland in the northeast corner of the Navajo Nation reservation. He had presented his operations within the reservation as legal hemp farming. [9] In 2024, Navajo Nation authorities charged Benally and business partner Farley BlueEyes on related crimes. [17]
The Squaxin Island Tribe opened the United States' first tribal-controlled cannabis store, "Elevation", in November 2015. The Suquamish Tribe in Western Washington began selling cannabis in December 2015, collecting the same 37% tax as the surrounding state. [18] [19] Both tribes legalized marijuana internally, and signed 10-year compacts with the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board. [20]
The Squaxin Island Tribe's Island Enterprises began growing cannabis in 2017, in the Skokomish River Valley on what they called the state's first licensed outdoor farm. [21]
In July 2015, a joint operation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Indian Affairs shut down grow operations on two reservations in Modoc County in Northern California. Plants and prepared cannabis were seized, but no arrests were made; news reporting indicated that the informant whose complaint sparked the raid was involved in a political power struggle with one of the growers, who is also her brother. [22]
Commencement Bay Cannabis, operated by the Puyallup Tribe, opened on tribal property in Fife, Washington in 2017. The city does not allow cannabis sales, but the tribe operates outside the city's jurisdiction. [23]
In December 2017, the Port Gamble Band of S’Klallam Indians entered a compact with the State of Washington to sell cannabis on its land. [24] High Point Cannabis was opened by the tribe's investment enterprise, Noo-Kayet Investments, the same year, which operated out of a trailer until building its first retail storefront in 2023. [25]
The Jamestown S'Kallam Tribe opened the Cedar Greens Cannabis shop in October 2019. [26]
The Crow Tribe of Montana legislative branch approved adult-use cannabis sales on April 16, 2021. [27]
The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe in New York legalized adult-use cannabis on June 28, 2021. Under the legislation, dispensaries must be licensed by the tribe, and all growing, processing, and sales must occur on tribal lands. Adult tribal members are permitted to grow up to twelve plants. [28] [29] [30]
In 2023, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians voted to legalize recreational cannabis on tribal lands. The tribe opened its first dispensary for medical cannabis, which serves both tribe members and the general public, on 20 April 2024 with plans to expand into recreational cannabis sale in the future. [31]
The Washington Post in 2014 noted that the Yakama Nation of Washington State, following the state's legalization of cannabis, opposed legalization in ten state counties containing what the tribe considers its traditional lands. [32] [33]
The Menominee Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation located in northeastern Wisconsin held in trust by the United States for the Menominee Tribe of Wisconsin. It is the largest Indian reservation east of the Mississippi River. In the Menominee language, it is called Omāēqnomenēw-Otāēskonenan, "Menominee Thing Set Apart", or alternatively omǣqnomenēw-ahkīheh, "in the Menominee Country".
Alex White Plume is the former vice president and president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe of the Pine Ridge Reservation, located on South Dakota of the United States. He served as president from June 30, 2006 to November 2006 after Cecilia Fire Thunder was impeached.
In the United States, increased restrictions and labeling of cannabis as a poison began in many states from 1906 onward, and outright prohibitions began in the 1920s. By the mid-1930s cannabis was regulated as a drug in every state, including 35 states that adopted the Uniform State Narcotic Drug Act. The first national regulation was the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937.
The use, sale, and possession of cannabis containing over 0.3% THC by dry weight in the United States, despite laws in many states permitting it under various circumstances, is illegal under federal law. As a Schedule I drug under the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970, cannabis containing over 0.3% THC by dry weight is considered to have "no accepted medical use" and a high potential for abuse and physical or psychological dependence. Cannabis use is illegal for any reason, with the exception of FDA-approved research programs. However, individual states have enacted legislation permitting exemptions for various uses, including medical, industrial, and recreational use.
The Flandreau Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation, belonging to the federally recognized Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe of South Dakota. They are Santee Dakota people, part of the Sioux tribe of Native Americans. The reservation is located in Flandreau Township in central Moody County in eastern South Dakota, near the city of Flandreau.
Cannabis in California has been legal for medical use since 1996, and for recreational use since late 2016. The state of California has been at the forefront of efforts to liberalize cannabis laws in the United States, beginning in 1972 with the nation's first ballot initiative attempting to legalize cannabis. Although it was unsuccessful, California would later become the first state to legalize medical cannabis through the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, which passed with 56% voter approval. In November 2016, California voters approved the Adult Use of Marijuana Act with 57% of the vote, which legalized the recreational use of cannabis.
In Colorado, cannabis has been legal for medical use since 2000 and for recreational use since late 2012. On November 7, 2000, 54% of Colorado voters approved Amendment 20, which amended the State Constitution to allow the use of marijuana in the state for approved patients with written medical consent. Under this law, patients may possess up to 2 ounces (57 g) of medical marijuana and may cultivate no more than six marijuana plants. Patients who were caught with more than this in their possession could argue "affirmative defense of medical necessity" but were not protected under state law with the rights of those who stayed within the guidelines set forth by the state. The Colorado Amendment 64, which was passed by voters on November 6, 2012, led to recreational legalization in December 2012 and state-licensed retail sales in January 2014. The policy has led to cannabis tourism. There are two sets of policies in Colorado relating to cannabis use: those for medicinal cannabis and for recreational drug use along with a third set of rules governing hemp.
In the United States, cannabis is legal in 38 of 50 states for medical use and 24 states for recreational use. At the federal level, cannabis is classified as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, determined to have a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use, prohibiting its use for any purpose. Despite this prohibition, federal law is generally not enforced against the possession, cultivation, or intrastate distribution of cannabis in states where such activity has been legalized. On May 1, 2024, the Associated Press reported on plans by the Drug Enforcement Administration to move cannabis to the less-restrictive Schedule III.
The legal history of cannabis in the United States began with state-level prohibition in the early 20th century, with the first major federal limitations occurring in 1937. Starting with Oregon in 1973, individual states began to liberalize cannabis laws through decriminalization. In 1996, California became the first state to legalize medical cannabis, sparking a trend that spread to a majority of states by 2016. In 2012, Washington and Colorado became the first states to legalize cannabis for recreational use.
Cannabis in South Dakota is legal for medical use as of July 1, 2021, having been legalized by a ballot initiative on November 3, 2020. Prior to then, cannabis was fully illegal, with South Dakota being the only U.S. state which outlawed ingestion of controlled substances. Testing positive for cannabis can be a misdemeanor offense. South Dakota would have become the first state in US history to legalize recreational and medical cannabis simultaneously, but an amendment legalizing recreational marijuana that was approved in the same election was struck down as unconstitutional the following February. The challenge claimed the amendment violated Amendment Z, the "Single-Subject Rule". The decision was appealed to the South Dakota Supreme Court, which upheld the lower court's decision on November 24, 2021.
Cannabis in Wisconsin is illegal for recreational use. Possession of any amount is punishable by up to 6 months in prison and a $1000 fine for a first offense. A second offense is punished as a felony with up to 3.5 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine. At the local level, however, numerous municipalities and counties have decriminalized cannabis or lessened penalties for minor possession offenses. Medical use is legal only in the form of low-THC cannabis oil.
Cannabis in Oklahoma is illegal for recreational use, but legal for medical use with a state-issued license, while CBD oil derived from industrial hemp is legal without a license.
Cannabis in Texas is illegal for recreational use. Possession of up to two ounces is a class B misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days in prison and a fine of up to $2000. Several of the state's major municipalities have enacted reforms to apply lesser penalties or limit enforcement, however.
Cannabis in Minnesota is legal for recreational use since August 2023. Governor Tim Walz signed House File 100 on May 30, 2023, legalizing the use, possession, and cultivation of cannabis within the state. The state's new Office of Cannabis Management will establish a regulatory framework for commercial cultivation and sales, with exceptions for tribal nations.
Cannabis in Washington relates to a number of legislative, legal, and cultural events surrounding the use of cannabis. On December 6, 2012, Washington became the first U.S. state to legalize recreational use of marijuana and the first to allow recreational marijuana sales, alongside Colorado. The state had previously legalized medical marijuana in 1998. Under state law, cannabis is legal for medical purposes and for any purpose by adults over 21.
Cannabis in Mexico is legal for both recreational and medicinal purposes. It became legal for recreational purposes in June 2021, upon application and issuance of a permit from the health secretariat, COFEPRIS. On 29 June 2021, the Supreme Court of Mexico decriminalized the recreational use of cannabis. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador signed a bill that allows adults 18 and over to possess up to 28 grams of cannabis and grow up to six marijuana plants on their property.
Elevation is a cannabis shop on the Squaxin Island Tribe trust lands at Kamilche, Washington, across Washington State Route 108 from the tribe's Little Creek Casino. It became the first tribally operated cannabis shop in the United States in November 2015.
Referendum Question #2, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Marijuana Legalization Measure, was a ballot measure in the US that was sent to voters on September 7, 2023, by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Tribal Council. The proposal sought to legalize the recreational use of cannabis on tribal lands for those over the age of 21, and to require the EBCI Tribal Council to adopt legislation to regulate legal cannabis.
Gambling transformed reservations 40 years ago, but often only enriched a few. Could the legal marijuana business prove more broadly beneficial?