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Bossier Parish Cannabis – Is It Legal & Where To Buy 2025

  1. Louisiana Cannabis
  2. Bossier Parish Cannabis

Is Cannabis Cultivation Legal in Bossier Parish?

Licensed cannabis cultivation in Bossier Parish is legal if intended for medical use in accordance with the Alison Neustrom Act or Act 261 of the State of Louisiana, passed in 2015 and amended subsequently by various Acts, including Act 424 in 2021, and Act 491, Act 492, and Act 628 in 2022.

The State of Louisiana’s Medical Marijuana Program was created by Act 261. The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF) handled the regulation of medical cannabis and medical cannabis cultivation and manufacturing licensing before August 1, 2022. On that date, however, the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) took over the responsibility.

Louisiana Administrative Code (LAC) 51:XXIX:101-907 limits the issuance of the medical cannabis license allowing both cultivation and manufacturing to two licensees. Those licensees were predetermined by Act 261 to be the Southern University Agricultural Center and the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center. Their licenses need to be renewed on July 1 each year. The licensee is allowed to choose one appointee to do the medical cannabis cultivation and manufacturing activities. The appointee is then required to apply for a permit from the LDH. The permit fee is $100,000 a year.

The cultivation facilities of the permittees are required to be enclosed, hiding all medical cannabis activities from the public. The enclosure must also prevent the escape of any odors. The facility must be locked, with a security system protecting it, and armed with alarms and video surveillance that includes audio. Footage must be stamped with the date and time and retained for a minimum of 30 days. Only authorized staff must be allowed to enter. If guests are received, their arrival and departure must be logged. They must be escorted by staff while in areas of the facility that contain medical cannabis in any form.

The purchase, sale, transportation, or waste disposal of medical cannabis in any form must also be logged by the permittee not more than 24 hours afterward on its inventory system. This inventory must be interfaced with the Louisiana Medical Marijuana Tracking System (LMMTS). All other activities related to the permittee’s medical cannabis activities must be updated on the same inventory once every week. The LDH may inspect any medical cannabis facility a minimum of twice in each fiscal year.

Is Cannabis Manufacturing Legal in Bossier Parish?

Licensed medical cannabis product manufacturing in Bossier Parish is legal under the State of Louisiana’s Act 261, later amended by several Acts. Only the appointees of the two existing licensees may apply for the LDH permit for the manufacturing of medical cannabis products. LAC 51:XXIX:101-907 requires them to comply with the same requirements for manufacturing facilities as those for cultivation facilities.

Furthermore, LAC 51:XXIX:101-907 also requires each permittee to take random samples before any batch of medical cannabis product is divided into portions or packaged. These samples must be submitted for testing to a laboratory certified by the LDH. The permittee must wait until after the laboratory has submitted a passing certificate of analysis to the LDH before selling the batch. If the test fails, the permittee is allowed one chance to remediate the batch and submit another set of random samples to be retested. If the samples fail the test again, the whole batch must be considered medical cannabis waste and destroyed.

According to LAC 7:XLIX:2903, all the packaging to be used for medical cannabis and medical cannabis products must first be approved by the LDH and are required to be tamper-proof, child-proof, and light-resistant. Packages that contain several portions or servings must be resealable and still be child-proof when resealed. The packaging and labeling of any medical cannabis item or product must not be similar to any food that is sold commercially, and must not be attractive to minors. Medical cannabis and medical cannabis product packages and labels are not allowed to display any visual that may be misconstrued to mean that the item is endorsed by the state, parish, or municipality.

Is Cannabis Retail Legal in Bossier Parish?

Licensed medical cannabis retail to certified patients or their caregivers in Bossier Parish was legalized by Act 261 of the State of Louisiana, amended by succeeding Acts. The required therapeutic marijuana pharmacy permit for a retailer to operate is issued by the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy. Licensed medical cannabis retailers are also allowed by Louisiana Revised Statute (RS) 40: 1046.1 to sell medical cannabis and its products to holders of medical cannabis cards or their equivalent from other US states.

The Board of Pharmacy stopped accepting applications for the therapeutic marijuana pharmacy permit on September 4, 2022. As of July 2023, the Board has issued 10 permits with none of them in Bossier Parish.

A licensed therapeutic marijuana pharmacy licensee in a region of the state shall be allowed by the Board of Pharmacy to establish an additional satellite location when the Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) shows 3,500 qualified medical cannabis patients active in the region. Another satellite site will be allowed once the licensee's main pharmacy and first satellite site each have 3,500 actively purchasing qualified medical cannabis patients. The patient count is done on August 1, or shortly after, every year. There is, however, a cap of 30 therapeutic marijuana pharmacy locations to be allowed throughout the state.

A minimum of 15 miles must separate the locations of licensed therapeutic marijuana pharmacies in regions where parish populations are below 350,000. This is reduced to 10 miles in a region containing a parish with a population above 350,000. It is further decreased to five miles in a region containing a municipality with a population above 350,000.

Licensed therapeutic marijuana pharmacies are allowed to sell unprocessed raw medical cannabis, such as plant parts and flowers, as well as the following medical cannabis products that LAC Title 46 Part LIII allows licensed medical cannabis manufacturers to produce:

  • Oils
  • Pre-rolls and other combustible forms of medical cannabis
  • Topical products, such as lotions
  • Transdermal patches
  • Tinctures
  • Extracts
  • Sprays
  • Metered-dose inhalers
  • Capsules and tablets
  • Chewable gelatin or pectin products
  • Edible products
  • Suspensions
  • Solutions
  • Suppositories

The 2021 Annual Report of the Medical Marijuana Program showed that licensed therapeutic marijuana pharmacies were also allowed to sell medical cannabis concentrates and syringes.

Certified patients or their caregivers are restricted by Act 424 from purchasing more than 2.5 ounces or 71 grams of unprocessed or raw medical cannabis every 14 days. Certified patients younger than 21 are not allowed to purchase unprocessed or raw medical cannabis unless their physician’s recommendation specifically states that they may do so.

Before dispensing medical cannabis or its products, the licensed therapeutic marijuana pharmacy’s pharmacist must check the certified patient’s record in the PMP. The pharmacist must contact the recommending clinician for any questions.

Is Cannabis Delivery Legal in Bossier Parish?

Yes, it is legal for licensed therapeutic marijuana pharmacies to deliver medical cannabis and its products to certified patients or caregivers in Bossier Parish. In fact, Act 491 of the State of Louisiana mandates that they do so once a month at the minimum.

Act 491 also allows the transportation of medical cannabis and its products from one medical cannabis permittee’s facilities to another permittee’s facilities, or to licensed therapeutic marijuana pharmacies and medical cannabis testing laboratories with LDH certification.

How to Get a Medical Marijuana Card in Bossier Parish

The State of Louisiana does not issue medical cannabis cards. According to RS 40:1046, residents of Bossier Parish must get an authorized clinician’s recommendation to qualify for medical cannabis treatment under the Medical Marijuana Program. Authorized clinicians are any of the following:

  • A state-licensed medical doctor whom the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners considers to be in good standing
  • A state-licensed medical psychologist whom the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners considers to be in good standing
  • A state-licensed advanced practice nurse practitioner authorized to prescribe medicines and whom the Louisiana State Board of Nursing considers to be in good standing

The authorized clinician’s recommendation is given to patients after a diagnosis of one of the following ailments:

  • Chronic pain from sickle cell disease
  • Crohn's disease
  • Cachexia
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder
  • Epilepsy
  • Spasticity or Intractable pain
  • Alzheimer's disease
  • Lewy body dementia
  • Glaucoma
  • Parkinson's disease
  • Motor neuron disease
  • HIV
  • Seizure disorders
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Diagnosed concussion
  • Chronic pain from fibromyalgia
  • Traumatic brain injury
  • Muscular dystrophy
  • Severe muscle spasms
  • AIDS
  • Spinal muscular atrophy
  • Huntington's disease
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
  • Cancer
  • An illness that requires palliative or hospice care
  • Autism spectrum disorder in patients aged 18 and above with any of the following behaviors:
    • Behavior that is physically aggressive or destructive
    • Behavior that causes self-injury
    • Behavior that is severely repetitive or stimulating and endangering the patient
    • Severe people avoidance or lack of communication, putting the patient at risk
  • An illness considered debilitating by the authorized clinician

If the patient with autism spectrum disorder is below 18, a clinician’s recommendation may only be issued after a pediatrician specializing in the disorder has been consulted.

Inquiries may be addressed to:

Medical Marijuana Program

628 N. 4th Street

Baton Rouge, LA 70802

Phone: 225-342-7533

How Has Cannabis Legalization Impacted the Economy of Bossier Parish?

Act 492 of the State of Louisiana charges medical cannabis permittees for cultivation and manufacturing 7% of their gross sales to licensed therapeutic marijuana pharmacies monthly, payable to the Louisiana Department of Revenue (LDR). The fund is allocated for the Medical Marijuana Program expenses.

The Medical Marijuana Program’s 2021 Annual Report showed that fees collected that year from therapeutic marijuana pharmacy permittees and medical cannabis cultivation and manufacturing permittees totaled $208,919.90. There was a deficit in covering Program expenses of $752,040.19 even after the State General Fund (SGF) contributed $523,700.

The Effects of Cannabis Legalization on Crime Rates in Bossier Parish

Medical cannabis was legalized in Bossier Parish in 2015.

Data sent by the Bossier Parish Sheriff's Office to the Crime Explorer page of the FBI shows that in 2014, a year before the legalization of medical cannabis, there were 13 marijuana possession arrests and five marijuana sales arrests, totaling 18 marijuana offense arrests.

In 2016, a year after the legalization of medical cannabis, there were 27 marijuana possession arrests and two marijuana sales arrests, totaling 29 marijuana offense arrests.

In 2019, there were 293 marijuana possession arrests and 13 marijuana sales arrests, totaling 306 marijuana offense arrests.

In 2021, the latest available data showed 225 marijuana possession arrests and five marijuana sales arrests, totaling 230 marijuana offense arrests.

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

  • 2014: 3 arrests
  • 2016: 8 arrests
  • 2019: 114 arrests
  • 2021: 101 arrests