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Paulding County Cannabis – Is It Legal & Where To Buy 2025

  1. Georgia Cannabis
  2. Paulding Cannabis Overview

Is Cannabis Cultivation Legal in Paulding County?

Under the State of Georgia’s Haleigh’s Hope Act or Georgia House Bill 1 (HB 1) which took effect in 2015 and Georgia’s Hope Act or Georgia House Bill 324 (HB 324) which took effect in 2019, it is legal to cultivate cannabis in Paulding County provided the cannabis cultivation company is licensed, the cannabis crops have low tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content, and the low-THC cannabis is only for medical use. Low-THC cannabis in HB 1 is defined as cannabis with a THC content that is below 5%.

Licenses for all types of low-THC cannabis companies must be applied for from the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission (GMCC). To cultivate low-THC medical cannabis in Paulding County, a production license must be acquired from the GMCC, either for Class 1 or Class 2. Applications for these licenses, however, closed on January 27, 2021.

The GMCC is only authorized to issue two licenses for Class 1 low-THC medical cannabis production and four licenses for Class 2 low-THC medical cannabis production. On September 21, 2022, the Commission already announced the awarding of the two Class 1 production licenses, with licensees required to start operating no later than September 21, 2023. However, the Class 2 production licenses have not yet been awarded as of June 2023.

Both classes of low-THC medical cannabis production licensees are required to grow cannabis crops indoors. The Class 1 low-THC medical cannabis production licensee may grow up to 100,000 square feet of cannabis crops and must pay the following fees:

  • Application Fee: $25,000
  • Initial License Fee: $200,000
  • Annual Renewal of the License Fee: $100,000

Each time the Class 1 low-THC medical cannabis production license is sold to another company, the following fees must be paid:

  • First Sale Transfer Fee: $100,000
  • Second Sale Transfer Fee: $150,000
  • Third Sale Transfer Fee: $200,000
  • Fourth Sale Transfer Fee: $200,000
  • Fee for a Change in Company Name, Owner, or Agent: $1,000

The Class 2 low-THC medical cannabis production licensee is restricted to growing only up to 50,000 square feet of cannabis crops and is charged the following fees:

  • Application Fee: $5,000
  • Initial License Fee: $100,000
  • Annual Renewal of the License Fee: $50,000

Transfers of ownership by sale have the following charges for Class 2 low-THC medical cannabis production licenses:

  • First Sale Transfer Fee: $12,500
  • Second Sale Transfer Fee: $62,500
  • Third Sale Transfer Fee: $112,500
  • Fourth Sale Transfer Fee: $112,500
  • Fee for a Change in Company Name, Owner, or Agent: $1,000

A separation of more than 3,000 feet must exist between a licensed low-THC medical cannabis production facility of any class and a church, childcare establishment, or school. The licensed cannabis production facility will be inspected once a year by the GMCC and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation on separate occasions. The facility must also welcome any inspection at any time by authorities from the municipality or county.

The application of any kind of artificial pesticides under the regulation of the Georgia Department of Agriculture upon low-THC medical cannabis crops is prohibited by HB 324. All activities of low-THC medical cannabis production licensees, from when they plant, trim, dry, cure, and extract cannabis oil, to the disposal of any cannabis waste, must be monitored and documented in their cannabis inventory tracking system.

Is Cannabis Manufacturing Legal in Paulding County?

Under the State of Georgia’s HB1 and HB 324, it is legal to manufacture only low-THC medical cannabis oil and certain low-THC medical cannabis oil products in Paulding County provided the cannabis manufacturing company is licensed. The manufacturing of low-THC medical cannabis oil and some of its product forms are also authorized activities for Class 1 and Class 2 low-THC medical cannabis production licensees in addition to cannabis cultivation.

The allowed product forms for manufacturing are low-THC medical cannabis oil tinctures, capsules, transdermal patches, and lotions. Class 1 and Class 2 low-THC medical cannabis production licensees are, however, not allowed to manufacture low-THC medical cannabis oil that is to be used through vaporization. HB 324 expressly forbids the production of electronic cigarettes, electronic pipes, vaping cartridges, and similar products. Edibles such as cannabis-infused food products are also prohibited.

Class 1 and Class 2 low-THC medical cannabis production licensees must engage the services of an independent GMCC-certified laboratory to test random samples from all batches of low-THC medical cannabis oil they extract and the low-THC medical cannabis oil products they make. The laboratory will determine if the samples contain the correct THC level and do not have any contamination from solvents, heavy metals, pesticides, pathogens, and other impurities. The entire batch from which a failing sample is taken must be considered as waste and disposed of properly, with the proof sent to the GMCC.

Is Cannabis Retail Legal in Paulding County?

Under HB1 and HB 324 of the State of Georgia, it is legal to sell by retail in Paulding County only low-THC medical cannabis oil and the low-THC medical cannabis oil products that are allowed to be manufactured provided the cannabis dispensary company is licensed and the low-THC medical cannabis is sold only to medical cannabis cardholders. These do not include edibles or cannabis for vaping. The purchase limit is 20 fluid ounces per transaction or its equivalent.

According to the 2023 GMCC Annual Report, HB 324 has authorized the GMCC to award five low-THC medical cannabis dispensing licenses to every Class 1 and Class 2 low-THC medical cannabis production license holder. The GMCC will add another dispensing license to each licensee when the Low THC Oil Registry of the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) lists at least 25,000 patients, and one more dispensary license each for every 10,000 increase in the number of patients. The registry already had 27,257 patients as of March 9, 2023.

The two Class 1 low-THC medical cannabis production licensees had been given six low-THC medical cannabis dispensary licenses by the GMCC statewide as of May 24, 2023. They were not located in Paulding County.

Existing production licensees still have to apply for each low-THC medical cannabis dispensing license from the GMCC. The following fees depend on the county tier where the dispensary will be located, wherein Tier 1 counties have the lowest economic level:

Tier 1:

  • Application Fee: $5,000
  • License Fee: $15,000
  • Annual Renewal Fee: $25,000

Tier 2:

  • Application Fee: $5,000
  • License Fee: $20,000
  • Annual Renewal Fee: $30,000

Tier 3:

  • Application Fee: $5,000
  • License Fee: $25,000
  • Annual Renewal Fee: $35,000

Tier 4:

  • Application Fee: $5,000
  • License Fee: $30,000
  • Annual Renewal Fee: $40,000

A separation of more than 1,000 feet must exist between a licensed low-THC medical cannabis dispensing facility and a church, childcare establishment, or school.

Is Cannabis Delivery Legal in Paulding County?

The State of Georgia’s HB1 and HB 324 do not mention whether it is legal to deliver low-THC medical cannabis oil and the allowed low-THC medical cannabis oil products to medical cannabis cardholders.

HB 324 states, however, that the intra-facility transport of low-THC medical cannabis oil and the allowed low-THC medical cannabis oil products between various facilities of the same low-THC medical cannabis licensee is allowed. Class 1 and Class 2 low-THC medical cannabis production licensees, for instance, are allowed to transport their products to their own licensed dispensary facilities.

How to Get a Medical Marijuana Card in Paulding County

Residents of Paulding County can get a medical cannabis card from the State of Georgia’s DPH to access medical cannabis treatment. They must print out the Low-THC Oil Waiver and the Low-THC Oil Physician Certification from the online page of the Georgia Low-THC Oil Registry and take these to the state-licensed physician who has been treating them. They must sign the waiver and hand over both forms to the doctor.

The physician will fill up the certification and send both forms online to the Georgia DPH if the patient is diagnosed with at least one of the following ailments qualified under the program:

  • Crohn’s disease
  • Cachexia or intractable nausea and vomiting from cancer treatment
  • Seizure disorders
  • Mitochondrial disease
  • Severe Tourette’s syndrome
  • Autism spectrum disorder in persons aged at least 18
  • Severe autism in persons below 18
  • Intractable pain
  • Epidermolysis bullosa
  • PTSD from trauma in persons aged at least 18
  • Illnesses requiring hospice care
  • Sickle cell disease (end-stage or severe)
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (end-stage or severe)
  • Parkinson’s disease (end-stage or severe)
  • Multiple sclerosis (end-stage or severe)
  • Alzheimer’s disease (end-stage or severe)
  • Cancer (end-stage)
  • Peripheral neuropathy (end-stage or severe)
  • AIDS (end-stage or severe)

The necessity for a caregiver will be noted by the physician in the certification for patients below 18 or adult patients who are incapacitated. Both original forms will be kept in the doctor’s files but the patient may ask for copies.

The processing of the medical cannabis cards takes about 15 days and has a two-year validity. Once approved, the DPH will ask the Paulding County patient and caregiver to choose from the following public health office locations where they could pick up their respective cards and pay the $25 fee:

  • Bibb County
  • Whitfield County
  • Carroll County
  • Ware County
  • Chatham County
  • Troup County
  • Cherokee County
  • Sumter County
  • Clarke County
  • Richmond County
  • Cobb County
  • Muscogee County
  • Colquitt County
  • Lowndes County
  • Dekalb County
  • Laurens County
  • Fulton County
  • Hall County

The public may contact the Georgia DPH Low THC Oil Unit through these channels:

Phone: (770) 909-2765

Email: THCRegistry@dph.ga.gov

How Has Cannabis Legalization Impacted the Economy of Paulding County?

All sales of low-THC medical cannabis oil and low-THC medical cannabis oil products in the State of Georgia are subjected by HB 324 to sales and use tax. The Georgia Department of Revenue’s July 1 to September 30, 2023 General Rate Chart puts the sales and use tax for the period at 4%. The GMCC also sends to the state all fees charged to all types of low-THC medical cannabis companies.

The GMCC Annual Report for 2023 shows that collections of Class 1 low-THC medical cannabis production license fees alone totaled $400,000 as of January 1, 2023. The GMCC projected that it could collect $1.28 million in total for the fiscal year 2023 from low-THC medical cannabis dispensary licenses, Class 1 and Class 2 low-THC medical cannabis production licenses, and independent testing laboratory licenses, as well as their application fees and other fees.

The Effects of Cannabis Legalization on Crime Rates in Paulding County

Low-THC medical cannabis in Paulding County was legalized in 2015 but it was only in April and May 2023 that dispensary licenses were granted.

On the FBI’s Crime Explorer page, data sent by the Paulding County Sheriff's Office shows that in 2014, a year before the legalization of medical cannabis, there were 119 arrests for marijuana offenses, comprised of 118 arrests for possession and one arrest for sales.

In 2016, a year after the legalization of medical cannabis, there were 124 arrests for marijuana offenses, comprised of 114 arrests for possession and 10 arrests for sales.

In 2019, there were 96 arrests for marijuana offenses, comprised of 93 arrests for possession and three arrests for sales.

The latest data available, which is from 2021, shows 48 arrests for marijuana offenses, comprised of 46 arrests for possession and two arrests for sales.

In those years, the number of DUI arrests was as follows:

  • 2014: 119 arrests
  • 2016: 149 arrests
  • 2019: 32 arrests
  • 2021: 47 arrests