If you want to buy weed in DC, you’ll have to do so legally, and that means finding a DC weed dispensary that complies with local laws. Fortunately, there’s an easy way to do so, but it involves some pre-planning and understanding of the city’s weed laws.

While recreational weed use and possession is legal in the nation’s capital, sales remain a thorny issue thanks to federal law. As it stands, it’s illegal to sell or even give away weed in Washington DC unless you have a medical marijuana card. This link treehousedc.com

That tangle of law has created a confusing, yet oddly effective, black market in the District. As a result, DC’s burgeoning cannabis industry is rife with I-71 businesses that elude the law by “gifting” marijuana products to patrons.

Your Ultimate Guide to DC Weed Dispensaries: Where to Find the Best Bud

For example, the popular cannabis shop The Garden offers a variety of edibles and concentrates, including brownies and cookies from brands like Stoney Patch. When you purchase something else, such as a T-shirt, the store will provide you with the edibles as a free gift. It’s a creative workaround for a federal policy that’s not going to change anytime soon.

While the DC council has taken steps to ease up on I-71 restrictions and encourage current I-71 shops to become medical, there’s no guarantee that Congress won’t bigfoot DC once again. In the meantime, local officials have proposed plans to tax and regulate recreational weed sales—including using proceeds from those sales to help entrepreneurs in parts of the city disproportionately harmed by the War on Drugs.