THC DUI blood test bill filed in Florida House

commercial cannabis growers (Large)

A bill filed Thursday in the Florida House proposes to impose DUI penalties for drivers or boaters with a certain amount of THC in their blood samples.

The timing of the measure from West Palm Beach Democrat David Silvers is interesting, coming as the state expands its medical marijuana program.

House Bill 237 — the “Driving Under the Influence of Drugs Act” — proposes a threshold of 5 nanograms or more of THC per milliliter of blood to constitute DUI.

There has been scientific pushback against such blood testing for THC, a fat-soluble compound that is absorbed differently than alcohol, being a reliable measure of impairment.

The law, if passed, would go into effect in October.

It is the second interesting piece of drug-related legislation from a South Florida Democrat this session, following up on Rep. Kristin Jacobs‘ proposed kratom ban.

A.G. Gancarski

A.G. Gancarski has been the Northeast Florida correspondent for Florida Politics since 2014. He writes for the New York Post and National Review also, with previous work in the American Conservative and Washington Times and a 15+ year run as a columnist in Folio Weekly. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter: @AGGancarski



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