Indiana Cannabis Advocacy — HVMC, NORML, and the Tallian Legacy

Last verified: April 2026

Hoosier Veterans for Medical Cannabis (HVMC)

Hoosier Veterans for Medical Cannabis was founded in 2016 by Jeff Staker, a 60-year-old former Marine Corps drill instructor and retired Grissom Air Reserve Base firefighter. Staker created the group while exploring alternatives to OxyContin for a back injury. HVMC has been the most emotionally and politically resonant Indiana voice on reform, testifying at every interim study committee since 2017.

After President Trump’s December 2025 federal Schedule III rescheduling executive order, HVMC met with the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs and the Indiana Department of Health, and in January 2026 met with Business Affairs Secretary Mike Speedy to lobby for a state cannabis commission. Staker, February 2026: “They’re sticking their head in the sand, again. But, obviously, with Trump’s executive order for the rescheduling, the state’s going to have to do something.”

They're sticking their head in the sand, again. But, obviously, with Trump's executive order for the rescheduling, the state's going to have to do something.

Jeff Staker, Hoosier Veterans for Medical Cannabis, February 2026

Indiana NORML

Indiana NORML is the state chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Treasurer Jack Cain told WFYI in March 2026: “There’s 10,000 people arrested every year in Indiana for possessing cannabis. I would like politicians to tell me exactly, how does the state of Indiana benefit from arresting all of these people?” Indiana NORML’s primary work is voter education, statehouse lobbying, and assisting consumer–facing legal-information campaigns.

Indiana Cannabis Industry Association (ICIA)

The Indiana Cannabis Industry Association is the state’s industry trade group, organizing operators, ancillary service providers, and aspiring license-seekers around legalization that would establish a regulated market structure. ICIA’s policy priorities have aligned closely with the medical-then-adult-use sequencing favored by Sen. Jean Leising and former Sen. Karen Tallian.

Midwest Hemp Council

The Midwest Hemp Council is led by Bose McKinney & Evans partner Justin Swanson. Its policy footprint has grown sharply with the rise of intoxicating hemp products. The Council opposed Sen. Aaron Freeman’s 2026 SB 250 hemp-restriction bill as “decimating an entire industry,” and it remains the principal industry voice on the federal hemp-cliff conversation around the November 12, 2026 effective date of P.L. 119-37.

Marijuana Policy Project — Indiana

The Marijuana Policy Project maintains a state-tracking page (mpp.org/states/indiana) and provides national legal and policy resources used by Indiana reformers, but it is not a registered Indiana lobbying entity in the way HVMC and ICIA are.

The Tallian Legacy

Indiana’s reform infrastructure rests on the legislative foundation laid by former Sen. Karen Tallian (D-Ogden Dunes). Senate District 4 from December 2005 to her 2022 retirement, dubbed “The Pot Legislator” by Nuvo Newsweekly, Tallian filed serial cannabis bills across more than a decade: SB 347 (2012), SB 580 (2013, killed by then-Sen. Mike Young as Corrections chair), SB 314 (2014), SB 114 (2020) with a three-bill comprehensive package, and SB 87 / SB 223 (2021). She named the structural problem directly: “This legislature has been afraid to confront the entire cannabis question and takes every opportunity to stop debate.”

Today’s reform legislators — Sen. Greg Taylor, Reps. Mitch Gore, Heath VanNatter, Jake Teshka, Zach Payne — carry the Tallian model: file the bill, take the testimony, and force the chokepoint to keep saying no on the record.

Institutional Opposition

The opposition coalition is durable, well-resourced, and consistently appears at every interim study committee.

Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council (IPAC)

Executive Director Chris Naylor: “Indiana is in the middle of an addiction crisis. Adding another substance like marijuana would be like throwing gasoline on a fire.” IPAC remains the most influential law-enforcement–adjacent voice in committee testimony, and it counts current Senate Corrections Chair Aaron Freeman among its 2018 Legislative Excellence Award honorees.

Indiana State Police

Superintendent Doug Carter told FOX59 in November 2023: “Right now, marijuana is illegal in Indiana, and I know I am on an island almost by myself, but I think it needs to stay that way.” ISP’s K-9 and interdiction posture is a recurring policy reference for opposition lawmakers.

Indiana Chamber of Commerce

Under longtime CEO Kevin Brinegar, the Chamber formally opposes both recreational and medical legalization, citing workforce productivity and absenteeism concerns tied to drug-free workplace policies of major Indiana employers like Eli Lilly, Cummins, Subaru, Toyota, and Honda.

Indiana Catholic Conference

The Indiana Catholic Conference — under former Executive Director Angela Espada and current ED Alexander Mingus — operates as the public-policy voice of Indiana’s five Catholic dioceses. ICC anchors opposition on Catholic social-teaching grounds and is a recurring committee-testimony presence.

Indiana Family Institute

Micah Clark leads Indiana Family Institute’s evangelical-aligned opposition to legalization, paired with broader social-conservative legislative priorities.

Smart Approaches to Marijuana

National anti-legalization group SAM, founded and led by Kevin Sabet, provides national reinforcement on Indiana committee testimony. Sabet told FOX59 in December 2025: “I think it’s a very tough road for Indiana to legalize any form of marijuana.”

The Notre Dame Factor

The University of Notre Dame does not formally lobby on cannabis bills. But its political and donor network anchors a culturally Catholic conservatism in northern Indiana that reinforces ICC positions and supplies caucus pressure. South Bend Republican leaders frequently move through Notre Dame’s orbit. The irony — Niles, Michigan dispensaries sit roughly ten minutes north of campus — is not lost on student observers.

Indiana Reform Coalition at a Glance

Explore More