From day one of publishing Illinois News Joint, the single issue brought to our attention the most by registered qualifying patient under the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Program Act has been the restrictions on how many plants a patient can grow. No other issue comes close. A recently introduce bill would change the law by increasing the number of plants a patient can grow.

House Bill 3498, introduced by Rep. Rita Mayfield, would raise the legal cannabis plant limit from 5 to 12, stating, “A dwelling, residence, apartment, condominium unit, enclosed, locked space, or piece of property not divided into multiple dwelling units shall not contain more than 12 plants at any one time.”

Interestingly, the first provision mentioning the plant limit in the Act was not changed from 5 to 12 but rather still states, “An Illinois resident 21 years of age or older who is a registered qualifying patient under the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Program Act may cultivate cannabis plants, with a limit of 5 plants that are more than 5 inches tall, per household without a cultivation center or craft grower license.”

HB3498 also would change “the definition of ‘designated caregiver’ to remove a requirement that the caregiver not have been convicted of an excluded offense and to raise the maximum number of patients that can be assisted to 10 patients”

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