West Virginia Lawmaker Pushes To Allocate Medical Marijuana Revenue That’s Going Unused Amid Federal Law Concerns
West Virginia medical cannabis revenue is gathering dust—$34 million of it—sitting in a state account like a jar of tip money no one dares to crack open. The legal cannabis revenue was meant to fund treatment, research, and the machinery that makes a medical marijuana program actually work. Instead, it’s marinating in a gray area of federal caution and state paralysis. The treasurer says they’re close—‘really close’—to unlocking the funds. A lawmaker from Cabell County looks at the map, sees two dozen states spending cannabis taxation proceeds without flinching, and asks the only question that matters: if we legalized medical cannabis, why are we acting like we didn’t?
Follow the money, or at least try to
The proposal on the table is simple enough to scrawl on a napkin. Route all medical marijuana proceeds through the general fund, then send the cash where it was always supposed to go: the Office of Medical Cannabis to keep the lights on; researchers at Marshall University and West Virginia University to turn data into better medicine; the Fight Substance Abuse Fund to meet the crisis where it lives; and the Department of Agriculture to test products so patients know exactly what they’re getting. One thing that didn’t survive the edit: law enforcement add-ons that never matched the program’s mission. As one sponsor put it, what does that do to help patients? In a state that often talks tough on accountability, aligning dollars with purpose is the kind of basic, unglamorous housekeeping that separates a mature medical program from a headline and a hope.
The politics of standing still
Of course, nothing’s ever just the plan. The House Finance chair is wary of the federal fog—Schedule I still looms like a bad neon sign—and that’s the excuse for letting the cash sit. But the legislature already put medical cannabis on the books. That was the promise. This is the tab. Other states manage to spend their marijuana policy reform revenue without the sky falling, and West Virginia is hardly a pioneer picking its way through uncharted jungle. Cross the state line and watch lawmakers hash out how to build adult-use markets from scratch—just look at Virginia House And Senate Approve Differing Marijuana Sales Legalization Bills, Setting Up Final Votes And Negotiations—and you realize our brand of caution isn’t prudence. It’s drift. And drift, in cannabis as in life, is where good intentions go to drown.
Blame the feds? Only up to a point
Yes, federal prohibition still puts a chill in the air. Banks flinch. Accountants ask for hazard pay. Regulators triple-check their commas. And change from Washington crawls. One GOP congressman recently shrugged that rescheduling could take decades—try on Justice Department ‘Should Take About 20 Years’ To Reschedule Marijuana, GOP Congressman Says for size—and you start to understand why state treasurers grow gray at the temples. But even under that federal cloud, states chart their own course. In the Plains, candidates pledge to defend patient access and keep D.C. from trampling local law—see Nebraska Congressional Candidates Vow To Fight For Medical Marijuana Access And Protect State Law From Federal Intervention. If they can muster that spine on the campaign trail, surely a state that already legalized medical cannabis can find a legal and transparent way to spend its own program revenue on its own people.
Don’t tax the patient twice
There’s a quieter lesson humming beneath the noise: don’t treat cannabis like a magic ATM. The goal is a functioning medical system, not a slush fund with a green label. Over-taxing, or parking money in purgatory, hits patients where it hurts—at the pharmacy counter and in the wait for services that never arrive. Other states have learned the hard way that restraint pays; if you want a sustainable market, be surgical, not greedy. Consider the warning shot from a neighbor: Pennsylvania Must Not Over-Tax Marijuana If Legalization Is Going To Work Well (Op-Ed). West Virginia has its blueprint: fund treatment, fund research, fund testing—then get out of the way and let the medical program do its job. Patients aren’t props. They’re the point. And if your own journey includes exploring compliant, high-quality options, take a look at our selections here: https://thcaorder.com/shop/.
