No Kentucky city or county votes to ban medical marijuana businesses in their borders
By Sarah Ladd
Kentucky Lantern
No counties or cities in Kentucky opted out of allowing medical marijuana businesses to operate in their borders after dozens had the chance to do so Tuesday, Nov. 5.
The legislature legalized medical marijuana in 2023 and licensing is underway for a 2025 program launch, but 106 jurisdictions (53 counties and 53 cities) let local voters decide if they wanted marijuana businesses nearby.
Of those 106 ballot measures, no counties or cities opted to bar medical marijuana businesses from operating in their borders, according to data compiled by Louisville Public Media.
Eligible Kentuckians — those with a history of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), cancer or other approved medical conditions will be eligible to receive a medical marijuana card starting Jan. 1 next year.
For a list of counties and cities that posed the question on their ballots, click here.
Kentucky has already awarded its first 26 medical cannabis licenses, which went to 16 cultivators and 10 processors.
Lottery drawings for dispensary licenses are scheduled for Nov. 25 and Dec. 16.
Kentucky Health News is an independent news service of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, based in the School of Journalism and Media at the University of Kentucky, with support from the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.
