With holiday travel ramping up, and more and more states legalizing marijuana, it is important to know whether or not you will be able to travel with the substance.
While Congress is still discussing whether or not to legalize recreational marijuana, the use and possession of the substance remains illegal on a federal level.
Because of this, the Transportation Security Administration could give travelers with marijuana some hassle, even if they bought it in a state where it is legal.
The TSA shared in a release last week that cannabis products, including cannabis-infused items, must have no more than 0.3% THC on a dry weight basis or have been provided by the FDA in order to be allowed through airport security.
This is important as the rules apply, even if travelers are flying from a state where marijuana use is legal to another state where it is legal.
TSA spokesperson Lorie Dankers spoke with Nexstar about the upcoming travel season and what it means for passengers carrying marijuana.
“TSA’s response to the discovery of marijuana is the same in every state and at every airport – regardless of whether marijuana has been or is going to be legalized at the state level,” Dankers said. “This also covers medical marijuana.”
However, Illinois lawyer Larry Mishkin told The Washington Post that the agency is more focused on potential security threats than passengers carrying marijuana.
“The TSA has gone out of its way to say that its focus is not on marijuana,” Mishkin told the Post.
And Dankers confirmed this, saying the “TSA’s focus is on terrorism and security threats to the aircraft and its passengers.”
Officers will not go out of their way to search for marijuana or other illegal drugs in passenger luggage, but the TSA says that if anything is found, they are required to report items that may violate the law to local law enforcement. From there, the choice of how to proceed is up to the authorities.
“Whether or not the passenger is allowed to travel with marijuana is up to law enforcement’s discretion,” Dankers said.
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