North Carolina cannabis history
Reviewed
Under G.S. 90-95, possession of a Schedule VI controlled substance is a Class 3 misdemeanor, and any imprisonment must be suspended. More than one-half ounce of marijuana is a Class 1 misdemeanor. More than one and one-half ounces is a Class I felony. The published history does not say which act created the marijuana quantity penalties.
This is a short history, not legal advice. The rules that apply today are on the North Carolina cannabis laws page. A date is included only when the linked page states it.
At a glance
Current statuteThe half-ounce and one-and-one-half-ounce lines are in G.S. 90-95 and name marijuana.
Section historyThe history note ends with 2025 session laws. No enacted medical-retail program was the page used here.
G.S. 90-95
- A reporting duty in the same section begins December 1, 2021. That date is an annual court-report date, not a legalization date.
Sources
Citations were checked against the linked pages on October 24, 2026. Claims without a statute, election result, regulator page, court opinion, or news report were left out.