AG Yost sues marijuana ‘operators’ as pro-cannabis organizations oppose potential referendum

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost accused nine multistate cannabis companies of trying to monopolize the market, which, Yost said in an antitrust lawsuit, would allegedly harm consumers and small Ohio-based cannabis companies.

Yost’s antitrust lawsuit began after an anonymous Ohio cannabis industry employee informed Yost’s office in October 2024 about alleged widespread “shelf-space allotments” among big marijuana companies operating both in the Buckeye State and the entire country, according to a press release.

The tip was later verified during an investigation that, in late 2022, found the senior representatives from the companies agreed to prioritize one another’s products in Ohio dispensaries while reducing or eliminating purchases from independent Ohio companies, according to the lawsuit.

“Our investigation uncovered allegations of an industry-wide scheme designed to push small Ohio businesses out of the market,” Yost said in a release. “Ohio’s antitrust laws protect competition and consumers, not backroom deals that rig the system for a select few.”

The person who shared the information with Yost’s office also alleged that some of these multistate companies established explicit internal quotas.

Yost’s lawsuit alleged that the companies violated the state’s Valentine Act by “entering into reciprocal trade agreements with competitors,” “sharing competitively sensitive information,” and “engaging in discriminatory distribution practices that disadvantaged independent Ohio cannabis operators.”

The press release said that these decisions “reduced product choice and quality for Ohio consumers, stifled innovation, and allowed the defendants to maintain or increase supra-competitive prices in the state’s cannabis market.”

“I was not for recreational marijuana… but if we’re going to have a legal market, it’s going to be a fair and competitive market!” Yost, who is seeking injunctive relief to halt the alleged unlawful conduct, wrote on X.

Prices are high for cannabis because the major players have illegal agreements to crowd out competition. We sued them today for antitrust violations.

I was not for recreational marijuana… but if we’re going to have a legal market, it’s going to be a fair and competitive market! https://t.co/gR5O7isc28

— Dave Yost (@DaveYostOH) February 6, 2026

Meanwhile, two pro-marijuana companies – not involved in the lawsuit – recently opposed a potential referendum pushed by their fellow cannabis advocates after Gov. Mike DeWine signed Senate Bill 56, with Yost approving the proposed summary language for the referendum.

“S.B. 56 upholds the will of Ohio voters by preserving a safe, regulated adult-use cannabis market while closing dangerous loopholes that allowed untested, intoxicating hemp products and out-of-state marijuana to flood Ohio shelves,” the Ohio Cannabis Coalition Executive Director David Bowling told the Ohio Capital Journal.

Pete Nischt, vice president of compliance and communications for Klutch Cannabis, also said that Ohioans who consume marijuana won’t see any changes implemented by the bill.

“S.B. 56 is a common-sense refinement of Issue 2,” the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol said in a statement. “S.B. 56 honors the will of Ohio voters while protecting public health. The referendum effort is about putting profits from unregulated intoxicating hemp and gas station weed sales above people.”