Cannabis in Kansas

Kansas has no legal cannabis market, no medical program and no state decriminalization. It is one of the few states where every amount for any purpose can lead to criminal charges, even though Colorado, Missouri and Oklahoma sit on its borders. That contrast is sharpest around Kansas City, where a legal purchase in Missouri turns into a crime when the buyer crosses back.

Simple possession is a Class B misdemeanor: up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $1,000 for a first offense, and repeat offenses carry a fine of up to $100,000 and a sentence of up to three and a half years. Possession of 450 grams or more is a felony, and growing more than four plants triggers felony charges that escalate with the count. Wichita voters approved a $50 municipal fine in 2015, and the council passed a similar rule in 2017, but the attorney general took the position that a city cannot reduce state penalties.

CBD is legal only if it contains no THC. Governor Jeff Colyer signed Senate Bill 282 on May 14, 2018, which took CBD oil out of the definition of marijuana, and Kansas applies a zero-THC standard, stricter than the 0.3 percent federal hemp limit. Claire and Lola's Law (2019) gives patients with qualifying conditions an affirmative defense, not protection from arrest, for CBD oil with up to 5 percent THC when a physician has recommended it in writing. Smokable hemp flower is banned, and out-of-state medical cards mean nothing.

The 2026 Legislature adjourned on April 10 without advancing reform. House Bill 2678 and Senate Bill 294 would have created a medical program and stalled in committee, and Senate Bill 292, which would set an age minimum and potency caps for hemp-derived cannabinoids such as delta-8, was still in committee. The earliest realistic reset is the 2027 session.