Indiana House Republicans Block Amendment to Remove Cannabis From Schedule I

Indiana lawmakers have once again shut the door on cannabis reform, rejecting a Democratic-led attempt to remove the plant from the state’s Schedule I controlled substances list. The move keeps Indiana among the last holdouts in the country, surrounded by states that have embraced legalization in some form.

GOP Blocks Cannabis Amendment in Party-Line Vote

The amendment, introduced by Rep. Kyle Miller, D-Fort Wayne, sought to remove cannabis from House Bill 1056—a Republican-sponsored bill that focuses on adding new substances, particularly opiates, to the state’s controlled substances list. Miller’s proposal would have effectively legalized cannabis in Indiana, a state where even medical use remains outlawed.

House Republicans voted 66-29 along party lines to declare the amendment out of order, shutting down any debate on the issue. The move signals that GOP leaders remain steadfast in their opposition, despite shifting public opinion and the financial success of cannabis markets in neighboring states.

“This was an opportunity to start the conversation about legalizing marijuana in our state,” Miller said in a statement after the vote. “House Republicans have signaled they aren’t interested in bringing hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue to Indiana.”

Indiana Is an Outlier in a Region Moving Toward Legalization

While Indiana lawmakers remain opposed to reform, the state’s neighbors have moved in the opposite direction.

• Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois have fully legalized cannabis for adult use.
• Kentucky has approved a medical cannabis program, though it remains highly restrictive.
• Michigan alone generated around $500 million in tax revenue from cannabis sales in 2024, according to the state’s Cannabis Regulatory Agency.

Indiana’s refusal to act has left it as an island in the Midwest, where consumers continue to turn to unregulated sources or cross state lines to purchase cannabis legally.

Republican Leaders Stand Firm Against Legalization

Top Republican lawmakers in Indiana’s General Assembly made their stance clear long before this latest vote. Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray dismissed medical cannabis as unnecessary in December, claiming he hasn’t heard “compelling medical cases” for its benefits.

House Speaker Todd Huston took an even harder stance, arguing that tax revenue should never drive public policy.

“I don’t believe public policy should ever be built based off revenue,” Huston said. “On any public policy, I don’t think you should chase revenue.”

This position clashes with the views of pro-legalization lawmakers, who point out that legal markets provide tested products, reduce law enforcement disparities, and generate substantial tax revenue—something Indiana has yet to tap into.

Public Support for Medical Cannabis Grows in Indiana

Despite Republican opposition, public sentiment in Indiana appears to be shifting. The 2024 Hoosier Survey, conducted by the Bowen Center for Public Affairs, found that 87% of Indiana adults support medical cannabis legalization.

Even newly elected Republican Gov. Mike Braun acknowledged that the state may need to reconsider its stance.

“To me, that’s probably a sign that we need to do whatever the smartest method has been among the other 30-plus states that have done it,” Braun said in December. “It’s probably time for it to have found its way to Indiana—on the medical side.”

A Glimmer of Hope for Medical Cannabis in 2025?

While broad legalization remains off the table, some movement on medical cannabis could still be possible in the 2025 legislative session.

• House Bill 1178 (Republican-sponsored) and Senate Bill 113 (bipartisan) both aim to legalize medical cannabis.
• If passed, these bills would bring Indiana in line with 38 other states that already have some form of medical cannabis program.

For now, Indiana remains among the few holdouts resisting both recreational and medical cannabis. But with public support at an all-time high and new legislative efforts gaining traction, the battle for legalization in the state is far from over.