Ohio OVI Marijuana Limits Could Be Lowered Under Senate Bill 55 But Should They Even Exist?

Published: November 7, 2025 5:00am

Author: Mastamynd

Hey everyone, it looks like the Ohio Senate isn’t finished rewriting cannabis laws just yet. After all the talk about Senate Bill 56, lawmakers have turned their attention to Senate Bill 55. This one focuses on something that hits home for every cannabis consumer and patient who drives: OVI laws.

OVI stands for Operating a Vehicle Impaired. It’s Ohio’s version of a DUI, and it means you can be charged for driving under the influence of alcohol, cannabis, or any other substance that could impair you. The problem is that cannabis doesn’t work like alcohol, and the law hasn’t caught up with that science.

Right now, if a blood test shows just 2 nanograms per milliliter of THC in your system, that’s enough to charge you with an OVI — even if you weren’t impaired at all. Senate Bill 55 aims to raise that limit to 5 nanograms per milliliter and stop the state from convicting people just because of THC metabolites. Those metabolites are inactive compounds that can stay in your body for days or weeks after using cannabis, especially for medical patients.

On paper, this looks like progress. But the bill still has to pass in the Ohio House before it becomes law. Until that happens, nothing changes.

Here’s the real question: should we even be testing for cannabis OVIs in the first place? If you’re a regular consumer or medical patient, you’re almost always going to test positive for THC. That doesn’t mean you’re impaired — it just means your body still has traces of it. Unlike alcohol, THC sticks around long after the effects wear off, so these tests don’t prove whether you’re actually too high to drive.

Are we really testing for impairment, or are we just punishing people for being cannabis consumers?

If Senate Bill 55 passes, it could protect responsible cannabis users from unfair OVI charges. But we still need a larger conversation about whether Ohio should even have a per-se limit for THC at all. There’s no solid science that says a certain THC number means someone is impaired. That’s why this law, while helpful, still doesn’t solve the deeper issue.

What do you think? Should Ohio keep testing for THC like alcohol? Or should the law focus on actual signs of impairment instead of numbers on a lab test? Do you think drinking alcohol is the same as consuming cannabis when it comes to driving?

Share your thoughts in the comments or on ohiocannabislive.com. I want to hear from you because the people most affected by these laws should be the ones shaping the conversation.

About the author:

Mastamynd is the founder of Ohio Cannabis Live and the Ohio Cannabis Expo. As one of the first medical cannabis patients in Ohio, he has spent years educating the public about cannabis laws, patient rights, and industry changes across the state. His videos and blogs have reached millions of viewers who look to him for real, unbiased cannabis news and insight.