Is Weed Legal in District of Columbia? (2026)

Instrument

Legal possession and home grow by adults 21 and over; possession offense; public consumption

Source

https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/48-904.01

Retrieved

2026-11-07

Fingerprint

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§ 48–904.01. Prohibited acts A; penalties.

(a) (1) Except as authorized by this chapter or Chapter 16B of Title 7 [§ 7-1671.01 et seq.], it is unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally to manufacture, distribute, or possess, with intent to manufacture or distribute, a controlled substance. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary, it shall be lawful, and shall not be an offense under District of Columbia law, for any person 21 years of age or older to:

(A) Possess, use, purchase, or transport marijuana weighing 2 ounces or less;

(B) Transfer to another person 21 years of age or older, without remuneration, marijuana weighing one ounce or less;

(C) Possess, grow, harvest, or process, within the interior of a house or rental unit that constitutes such person’s principal residence, no more than 6 cannabis plants, with 3 or fewer being mature, flowering plants; provided, that all persons residing within a single house or single rental unit may not possess, grow, harvest, or process, in the aggregate, more than 12 cannabis plants, with 6 or fewer being mature, flowering plants;

(D) Possess within such house or rental unit the marijuana produced by such plants; provided that, nothing in this subsection shall make it lawful to sell, offer for sale, or make available for sale any marijuana or cannabis plants.

(1A) (A) The terms “controlled substance” and “controlled substances,” as used in the District of Columbia Official Code, shall not include:

(i) Marijuana that is or was in the personal possession of a person 21 years of age or older at any specific time if the total amount of marijuana that is or was in the possession of that person at that time weighs or weighed 2 ounces or less;

(ii) Cannabis plants that are or were grown, possessed, harvested, or processed by a person 21 years of age or older within the interior of a house or rental unit that constitutes or at the time constituted, such person’s principal residence, if such person at that time was growing no more than 6 cannabis plants with 3 or fewer being mature flowering plants and if all persons residing within that single house or single rental unit at that time did not possess, grow, harvest, or process, in the aggregate, more than 12 cannabis plants, with 6 or fewer being mature, flowering plants; or

(iii) The marijuana produced by the plants which were grown, possessed, harvested, or processed by a person who was, pursuant to sub-subparagraph (ii) of this subparagraph, permitted to grow, possess, harvest, and process such plants, if such marijuana is or was in the personal possession of that person who is growing or grew such plants, within the house or rental unit in which the plants are or were grown.

(B) Notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph, the terms “controlled substance” and “controlled substances,” as used in the District of Columbia Official Code, shall include any marijuana or cannabis plant sold or offered for sale or made available for sale.

(1B) Notwithstanding any other provision of the District of Columbia Official Code, no District government agency or office shall limit or refuse to provide any facility service, program, or benefit to any person based upon or by reason of conduct that is made lawful by this subsection.

(1C) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to require any District government agency or office, or any employer, to permit or accommodate the use, consumption, possession, transfer, display, transportation, sale, or growing of marijuana in the workplace or to affect the ability of any such agency, office, or employer to establish and enforce policies restricting the use of marijuana by employees.

(1D) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to permit driving under the influence of marijuana or driving while impaired by use or ingestion of marijuana or to modify or affect the construction or application of any provision of the District of Columbia Official Code related to driving under the influence of marijuana or driving while impaired by marijuana.

(1E) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit any person, business, corporation, organization, or other entity, or District government agency or office, who or which occupies, owns, or controls any real property, from prohibiting or regulating the possession, consumption, use, display, transfer, distribution, sale, transportation, or growing of marijuana on or in that property.

(1F) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to make unlawful any conduct permitted by Chapter 16B of Title 7 [§ 7-1671.01 et seq.].

(d) (1) It is unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally to possess a controlled substance unless the substance was obtained directly from, or pursuant to, a valid prescription or order of a practitioner while acting in the course of his or her professional practice, or except as otherwise authorized by this chapter or Chapter 16B of Title 7 [§ 7-1671.01 et seq.], and provided in § 48-1201. Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, any person who violates this subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction may be imprisoned for not more than 180 days, fined not more than the amount set forth in § 22-3571.01, or both.

§ 48–911.01. Consumption of marijuana in public space prohibited; impairment prohibited.

(a) Notwithstanding any other District law, it is unlawful for any person to smoke or otherwise consume marijuana in or upon a public space, or in or upon any of the following places:

(1) A street, alley, park, sidewalk, or parking area;

(2) A vehicle in or upon any street, alley, park, or parking area; or

(3) Any place to which the public is invited. For the purposes of this subsection, and notwithstanding any other provision of law, a private club, which includes any building, facility, or premises used or operated by an organization or association for a common avocational purpose, such as a fraternal, social, educational, or recreational purpose, is a place to which the public is invited; provided, that a private club does not include a private residence.

(b) No person, whether in or on public or someone else’s private property, shall be impaired due to smoking or otherwise consuming marijuana and endanger the safety of himself, herself, or any other person or property.

(c) Any person violating the provisions of subsection (a) or (b) of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not more than the amount set forth in § 22-3571.01 or imprisoned for not more than 60 days.