Tag: hemp

Anti-Marijuana Groups File Lawsuit To Block Trump Administration’s Hemp CBD And THC Medicare Coverage Plan

A coalition of anti-marijuana organizations is suing the Trump administration over a novel initiative set to launch this week to widen the availability of CBD and THC for certain patients by covering hemp-derived products under select federal health insurance programs.

Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) and nine other drug prevention groups on Monday filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, challenging the legality of the cannabis program—which is being facilitated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)—and seeking a temporary restraining order to immediately halt the process.

The filing names CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. as defendants in the lawsuit. The lawsuit comes as CMS is set to start covering CBD and THC products as a Substance Access Beneficiary Engagement Incentive (BEI) beginning on Wednesday.

Under the BEI, patients enrolled in specific federal health insurance programs could have up to $500 worth of hemp-derived products covered each year. The CBD-focused plan will also allow a certain amount of THC in products, but the agency said earlier this month the rules are subject to change if federal hemp policy changes, as is currently expected under a law set to take effect later this year.

SAM and the other organizations—including the Cannabis Impact Prevention Coalition, Drug Free American Foundation and Save Our Society From Drugs—made several arguments in support of legal intervention to prevent the cannabidiol BEI from moving forward. Much of the complaint focuses on alleged violations of administrative rules to provide the treatment, which they point out has not received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval.

CMS didn’t publish a notice of proposed rulemaking for the cannabis BEI that would have afforded the public with a comment period to weigh in, and the agency’s initiative runs counter to a separate final rule it issued last year that “declared cannabis products ineligible for supplemental Medicare coverage for chronically ill patients,” the prohibitionist plaintiffs said.

Beyond those alleged violations of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), the groups noted that CMS described a BEI for CBD containing a maximum THC concentration that exceeds what would constitute federally legal hemp under a policy that’s set to be implemented in November.

The filing says the program would additionally violate the Social Security Act (SSA), which “does not allow CMS to sanction the possession and use of illegal and dangerous Schedule I substances by Medicare patients without clear congressional authorization.”

“CMS’s action represents an unprecedented and unlawful assertion of binding decision-making authority that will profoundly affect the health of elderly Americans,” SAM and the other organizations said in their complaint. “CMS took this action without the guardrails imposed by the administrative process, without any reasoned explanation, in conflict with the agency’s own recent APA-compliant determination, and without statutory authority.”

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Alcohol Industry Group Launches Push To Regulate Hemp THC Drinks Instead Of Banning Them

A major alcohol industry trade association is launching a new campaign pushing Congress to call off a scheduled ban on hemp THC beverages and instead regulate the products for consumer access.

Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA) on Tuesday announced it has created an educational microsite on the issue that offers resources on the issue and argues that “the same regulatory system that has worked for alcohol should be applied to intoxicating hemp products.”

In particular, the group is supporting an approach for hemp drinks that would include federal licensure of suppliers and distributors, a federal tax, independent testing requirements and the regulation of trade practices such as a prohibition on slotting fees, while allowing states to regulate the products in their own markets.

“This framework should prioritize a safe and reliable marketplace by supporting public safeguards and consumer choice,” the WSWA microsite says. “Alcohol regulation has been an unparalleled success and can serve as a model for the regulation of intoxicating hemp products, including beverages.”

At the state level, the alcohol lobby group is calling on states to create their own licensing structures and regulatory systems with components such as an age limit of 21, excise taxes, bans on synthetic cannabinoids, testing requirements, marketing restrictions and product tracking.

In the meantime, WSWA wants lawmakers to pass pending legislation to delay the scheduled ban on hemp THC products for two years, which it says will provide enough time for a regulatory approach to be crafted. As it stands now under legislation signed by President Donald Trump late last year, hemp THC products are set to be federally recriminalized on November 12. They initially became legal under the 2018 Farm Bill that Trump signed during his first term.

The wine and spirits group’s microsite also provides facts and figures about the intoxicating hemp market, saying it supports 320,000 jobs, has $28.4 billion in potential market activity and $1.5 billion in potential state tax revenue.

It also has a countdown timer showing how long lawmakers have to act until the ban goes into effect.

“If Congress fails to act, these products face a real risk of being removed from the shelves of licensed, responsible retail stores in November, but would still be available to consumers through multiple other unregulated channels” WSWA President and CEO Francis Creighton said in a press release. “Intoxicating products, including hemp beverages, need a clear, workable framework that protects public health and public safety while allowing responsible businesses to operate. This resource is designed to inform that conversation with facts, not confusion.”

Earlier this month, the House Agriculture Committee advanced a Farm Bill that hemp industry stakeholders hoped could be used to delay the pending federal ban on cannabinoid products containing THC. But while the legislation does contain certain hemp provisions aimed at assisting farmers, it did not include any reforms to the impending recriminalization.

WSWA recently hosted a conference at which industry stakeholders and a former congressman who owns an alcohol retail chain discussed hemp product issues.

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Texas Could See A Spike In Raids On Hemp Businesses Under New Rules, Industry Advocates Fear

Dallas attorney Chelsie Spencer specializes in making sure Texas businesses that sell hemp-derived THC products know how to stay in compliance with state and federal rules and regulations, an area that can be very confusing. She offers them a monthly service where her law firm rigorously vets distributors and helps to independently test their products to ensure they are safe and legal to sell in her clients’ stores.

“They pay us a phenomenal amount to stay compliant,” Spencer said.

That is why when Spencer learned that one of her North Texas clients had been raided by local police and the Drug Enforcement Administration, and his home surrounded, like he was a major narcotics dealer, she was shocked.

“They took everything from my client…his children’s cellphones, every computer in the house, took all the vehicles, seized all assets, and froze all cash,” Spencer said of the raid that occurred in July.

Since August 2024, local and federal law enforcement agencies have raided more than 15 businesses across the state that were accused of selling consumable hemp products that had illegal levels of THC, according to attorneys for these cannabis retailers. During these raids, law enforcement officials seized products and cash that businesses have still not recovered, and customers were scared away. Many of those retailers have not yet been found guilty of any crime, according to their attorneys.

“You always see the headlines about the raids, but you never see these huge headlines about charges and indictments,” said Andrea Steel, a Houston attorney for several THC businesses.

Even though they have affected a small fraction of 8,000 hemp retailers registered in Texas, these raids by law enforcement agencies have ramped up over the last two years to help some lawmakers build public support for banning hemp-derived THC products, Steel said. Over the summer, Gov. Greg Abbott (R) vetoed a bill the Legislature passed to ban hemp-derived THC and told state agencies to better regulate those THC products instead.

But, she said her clients fear these types of raids will continue because the new regulations being considered could create THC limits that will be nearly impossible to meet, shuttering THC businesses and deterring businesses from selling THC products.

“The same number of raids are occurring after the veto as before. In fact, there will likely be an increase in raids once the new rules and regulations are finalized because one of them is an increase in licensing fees for enforcement; they are going to need to justify that,” she said.

Law enforcement agencies deny that these raids were politically motivated. They have said these raids were based on concerns that these retailers were selling dangerous products, especially to children, and engaging in other unscrupulous activities such as money laundering, according to a news conference from Allen police, as well as a joint one between Temple and Belton police departments. Allen Police Chief Steve Dyes, whose department raided at least a dozen businesses and warehouses since 2024, was a fixture at the Texas Capitol during the legislative session, warning lawmakers that the hemp industry was corrupt and couldn’t be trusted.

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South Dakota Senate Panel Advances Bills To Ban Intoxicating Hemp And Kratom—But Without Recommendations For Passage

A South Dakota Senate panel advanced—but did not endorse—bans on hemp-derived intoxicants and kratom on Wednesday at the Capitol in Pierre.

Both bills were sponsored by Sen. John Carley, R-Piedmont.

The Senate Health and Human Services Committee voted unanimously to put the two prohibition bills in front of the full state Senate with no recommendation. Committees generally give a “do pass” recommendation to the bills they send out for a floor vote.

The votes came one day after the Senate Judiciary Committee offered its unqualified support for a bill meant to restrict the sale of certain hemp-based products to people older than 21. That bill came from Attorney General Marty Jackley (R).

In testimony about Carley’s bills, business owners and consumers of products like hemp-derived THC seltzers and kratom said they helped people kick opioids or alcohol. They also mentioned sales taxes collected on consumable products and the value of hemp to South Dakota farmers. That led some committee members to oppose the bills and sparked failed attempts to block the proposals. Ultimately, however, the committee opted to let the state Senate weigh in.

“We need to have a conversation about this on the floor,” said Sen. Curt Voight, R-Rapid City. “I think it rises to the level of a legislative decision.”

Possession, sale or use of kratom or THC consumables under each proposal would be a class 2 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a $500 fine.

Tighter rules on hemp products

The first bill, Senate Bill 61, aims to act as an outright ban on the possession, sale or use of any intoxicating hemp products in the state outside of licensed medical marijuana dispensaries.

Such products are typically produced by altering or distilling cannabidiol, or CBD, found in the hemp plant to produce forms of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, which is the intoxicating compound found in greater abundance in the marijuana plant.

Many of the gummies, vape cartridges and other products made using hemp-derived THC variants like Delta-8, Delta-9 or Delta-10 are sold primarily in smoke shops, but THC seltzers are often available at bars, liquor stores or grocery stores.

The products essentially act as a workaround for the prohibition of marijuana in South Dakota by anyone who lacks a medical marijuana card, Carley said. The senator is also a member of the state’s Medical Marijuana Oversight Committee, which has taken testimony from medical cannabis providers about the impact the unregulated market has on their operations.

“This actually is harming the licensed marijuana businesses,” Carley said.

Carley had the support of the South Dakota Police Chiefs’ Association, South Dakota Sheriff’s Association and a group called Protecting South Dakota Kids.

Opponents included representatives for hemp retailers and hemp growers and a handful of business owners, who said the bill’s ban on any products with more than 0.4 percent THC by weight would remove many non-intoxicating products from store shelves, including topical creams.

“All this is a hemp and CBD ban,” said Matt Yde, who sells CBD in Sioux Falls but does not offer intoxicating products. “I would have to close my store, because I would have to remove 90 percent of my products.”

Steve Siegel of the South Dakota Trial Lawyers Association said he’s had many friends who’ve switched to THC seltzers from alcohol or pain killers. He said their popularity shows consumer demand, and getting a medical marijuana card can be expensive and onerous.

“These drinks should be regulated. But they’re selling like wildfire,” Siegel said. “They’re a phenomenal alternative to alcohol.”

Carley responded by saying the state shouldn’t be encouraging people to switch from one mind-altering drug to another.

He was “sorry to hear” about people who’d been addicted to painkillers and alcohol, but said instead of switching to a THC alternative, “They need some friends there. They need some church. They need some God in their life, or even ice cream or tea.”

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Hemp’s Death Sentence Gets a Stay of Execution

A bipartisan group of lawmakers is moving to slow down the federal hemp THC ban that Congress quietly enacted during last year’s government shutdown, giving the industry more time to adjust and reopening a debate that many thought was settled.

On January 12, Rep. Jim Baird of Indiana introduced the Hemp Planting Predictability Act, a short bill that would delay implementation of the new federal hemp definition from one year to three. The change would push enforcement from November 2026 to November 2028, buying time for farmers, manufacturers, and regulators to negotiate a regulatory alternative to prohibition.

As reported by Marijuana Moment, the bill arrives after weeks of escalating concern from state officials, brewers, farmers, and hemp trade groups who say the existing timeline is unworkable.

A one-line fix with major consequences

The bill itself is only two pages long and makes a single change. It amends Section 781 of the appropriations law that ended the 2025 shutdown by striking the phrase “365 days” and replacing it with “3 years.”

That one edit pauses a sweeping policy shift that would otherwise take effect next year. Under the shutdown deal, most hemp-derived products would be treated as illegal marijuana if they contain more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container. The law also bans synthetic and chemically converted cannabinoids and redefines hemp in a way that collapses much of the post-2018 market.

High Times previously broke down the implications of that language in detail in its coverage of the shutdown deal that recriminalized hemp, setting off a one-year countdown that many operators described as existential.

Bipartisan backing and planting season pressure

Baird’s bill has attracted bipartisan support from the start. Initial cosponsors include Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, Rep. Gabe Evans of Colorado, Rep. Tim Moore of North Carolina, and Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota.

In statements following the bill’s introduction, lawmakers framed the delay as a matter of basic agricultural reality.

“Planting and growing crops requires planning well in advance,” Baird said, noting that farmers made investment decisions under the framework created by the 2018 Farm Bill and now face sudden legal uncertainty.

Craig echoed that concern, saying recent changes “pulled the rug out from under Minnesota’s hemp producers, craft brewers, and retailers” at a time when many small businesses are already dealing with rising costs and instability.

Those concerns align with what High Times reported in November, when states began signaling they would push back against the federal cap rather than immediately dismantle regulated hemp markets.

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Kansas Attorney General And Law Enforcement Sued Over Raids On Hemp Businesses

A McPherson County lawsuit filed by a Kansas business owner challenges “unconstitutionally vague” enforcement operations leading to seizure of cash and hemp-derived products at direction of the state’s attorney general and director of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

KBI director Tony Mattivi and Attorney General Kris Kobach said in October law enforcement officers raided CBD and vape shops to serve more than a dozen search warrants on businesses suspected of not complying with state drug law.

In a statement, Mattivi said targeted stores were “nothing but weed dealers” and the state must “enforce our controlled-substance laws when we have these substances causing bad effects on Kansas kids.”

Barry Grissom and Jake Miller, of a law firm based in Kansas City, Missouri, responded Monday by seeking on behalf of Mike Ballinger, owner of the McPherson CBD store Hanging Leaf, a court injunction to stop comparable raids and to compel return of seized property.

“The pleadings speak for themselves,” said Grissom, a former U.S. attorney for the District of Kansas and advocate for legalizing marijuana sales and consumption in Kansas.

Both Mattivi and Kobach, in their official capacity, were named in the filing requesting injunctive relief from “recent enforcement actions involving hemp products legally permitted under Kansas law.”

On October 1, Mattivi and Kobach disclosed their statewide “marijuana enforcement operation” focused on vape shops and CBD dispensaries. This law enforcement effort resulted in execution of at least 15 search warrants across Kansas.

The lawsuit said authorities seized $7,000 in inventory as well as cash from Hanging Leaf. A portion of cash taken into custody at Hanging Leaf was property of an unrelated business operated by the plaintiff, the suit said.

Attorneys for the plaintiff said Kansas law permitted hemp products with no more than 0.3 percent Delta-9 THC or tetrahydrocannabinol. The plaintiff alleged KBI testing with gas chromatography was capable of detecting “only the presence of THC and cannot determine the origin” of the substance. The suit says the KBI testing regimen improperly resulted in seizure of compliant goods.

In addition, the plaintiff asserted unconstitutional vagueness of Kansas law fostered “arbitrary enforcement that chills protected business activities.” The filing requested raids to be forbidden until the state adopted legal protection for products under 0.3 percent hemp derived from Delta-9 THC.

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Alabama Regulators Approve Hemp Product Rule Despite Opposition From Key Lawmaker

The Alabama Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) Board Thursday approved an emergency, temporary rule regulating the sale of consumable hemp products, over the opposition of a state representative who sponsored the law leading to the regulation.

The rule creates the Responsible Consumable Hemp Product Program and establishes warnings and fees for violations of the rule.

David Peacock, chief general counsel for the ABC Board, told board members that on first violation of the rule, retailers would receive a warning, and distributors would be fined $1,000 on first offense for selling a product that is not approved by the board.

“If the distributor were to purchase a product from a supplier that was violative a second time, they would no longer be able to use that supplier unless they provide to us a corrective action plan that we approve,” Peacock said.

Peacock did not say what products would be prohibited or allowed, but that there would be a list of products published on the ABC Board’s website.

Peacock said the rule is needed in accordance with HB 445, sponsored by Rep. Andy Whitt, R-Harvest, which passed the Legislature this spring. The law, which goes into effect on January 1, requires testing and labeling for all consumable hemp products and caps THC at 10 milligrams per individually wrapped product and 40 milligrams per package.

It also requires the ABC Board to license retailers of these products; restrict retail establishments selling hemp products and impose an excise tax on consumable hemp products. In October, the ABC Board passed a rule to implement the law.

The emergency rule passed 2-1 with board member John Knight, a former state representative, voting against it.

“I’m opposed to it only because I have a problem with the way it was done,” Knight said.

Whitt, who did not attend Thursday’s meeting, sent the board a letter Wednesday expressing his opposition to the emergency rule.

“In addition to my concerns about the non-compliance with statutory guidelines about emergency rules, there are other areas of the proposal that bother me,” the letter said. “Nowhere in the authorizing legislation does it provide for a Responsible Consumable Hemp Product Program, such as that legislatively authorized by Alabama Code Section 28-10-4 in connection with alcoholic beverages. Therefore, it seems that this proposed regulation goes beyond statutory authority.”

Whitt said in an interview Thursday afternoon that he had a great relationship with the board but reiterated his opposition to the rule.

“I think when it comes down to the emergency rulings, it serves a different purpose than maybe what’s transparent to begin with, maybe a self-serving group,” he said. “I want to make sure that it doesn’t and that the legislative process works.”

Curtis Stewart, the board’s administrator, explained that the rule’s intention is to protect retailers.

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Ohio Governor Signs Bill To Recriminalize Some Marijuana Activity, Vetoing Provision To Allow THC Drinks For A Year

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) signed a bill into law Friday that bans intoxicating hemp products and makes various changes to the state’s voter-passed marijuana law, including adding crimes such as making it illegal to bring legally purchased marijuana from another state back to Ohio.

DeWine signed Ohio Senate Bill 56, which will take effect in 90 days. He has been urging Ohio lawmakers to do something about intoxicating hemp products for the past nearly two years.

Ohio’s bill complies with recent federal changes by banning intoxicating hemp products from being sold outside of a licensed marijuana dispensary.

In November, Congress voted to ban products that contain 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container earlier this month when they voted to reopen the government.

Those who work in the intoxicating hemp industry are worried this will put thousands of people out of business.

DeWine line-item-vetoed the THC-infused beverage provision in the bill that would have allowed five milligram THC beverages to be manufactured, distributed, and sold in Ohio until December 31, 2026.

“My veto means that they cannot be sold,” DeWine said during a Friday press conference. “The simplest thing, frankly, to do is to stop it right now instead of going until the date in November set by federal law.”

DeWine said he does not think THC beverages are a good idea.

“I think they create extra problems,” DeWine said.

Ohio S.B. 56 had a provision that said if the federal government legalizes THC beverages, Ohio will consider “a more robust regulatory framework of these products,” according to the bill’s language.

“We got to this point because of poorly drafted federal legislation and people taking advantage of it,” Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman, R-Lima, said.

“So speculating about what the federal government may do in the future and what we may do as a result, I think, adds to the same problem that has already been created.”

On the marijuana side, the bill would reduce the THC levels in adult-use marijuana extracts from a maximum of 90 percent down to a maximum of 70 percent, cap THC levels in adult-use flower to 35 percent, and prohibit smoking in most public places.

Part of the probable cause portions were removed from the bill, but some of it still remains.

The bill prohibits possessing marijuana in anything outside of its original packaging and criminalizes bringing legal marijuana from another state back to Ohio. It also requires drivers to store marijuana in the trunk of their car while driving.

Ohio S.B. 56 would give 36 percent of adult-use marijuana sale revenue to municipalities and townships that have recreational marijuana dispensaries.

The bill also maintains the 10 percent tax rate on recreational marijuana and keeps home grow the same at six plants per adult and 12 per residence. It also places a cap on 400 marijuana dispensaries in the state.

Ohioans passed a citizen-initiated law to legalize recreational marijuana in 2023 with 57 percent of the vote. Sales started in August 2024 and exceeded $702.5 million in the first year.

Ohio lawmakers can change the law since it passed as a citizen initiative not a constitutional amendment, something they have been trying to do since late 2023.

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Bill On Ohio Governor’s Desk Will Put Hemp Companies Out Of Business, Owners Say

Ohioans in the intoxicating hemp industry fear a bill heading to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s (R) desk will put them out of business.

Ohio Senate Bill 56 is on its way to DeWine after Ohio Senate Republicans passed the bill Tuesday. The Ohio House passed the bill last month after it went to conference committee.

Ohio’s bill complies with recent federal changes by banning intoxicating hemp products from being sold outside of a licensed marijuana dispensary. If DeWine signs the bill into law before the new year, the ban could take effect as soon as March.

“This bill is going to put businesses like me and families like me out of business,” said Ahmad Khalil, one of the owners of Hippie Hut Smoke Shop, with locations in Ohio and Washington.

“Overnight, we’re going to see tens of thousands of people directly impacted, which will ripple effect into 50,000 of families that are also dependent on this person.”

Khalil has been in the hemp industry for nine years.

“This was my American dream, so to see it get taken away from you, kind of hurts,” he said.

Jason Friedman, owner of Ohio CBD Guy in Cincinnati, said this is extremely frustrating.

“My tentative plan will involve eventually closing my East Walnut Hills location resulting in less hours and likely loss of jobs for some of my employees,” he said.

Instead of a ban, Friedman wants regulations for the hemp industry such as age-gating, packaging restrictions, and testing requirements.

“For the state to say that they are changing their stance to banning from regulating because of what the federal government has done in banning intoxicating hemp in the recent spending bill, makes no sense because marijuana has been illegal federally the whole time,” he said.

Mark Fashian, president of hemp product wholesaler Midwest Analytical Solutions in Delaware, Ohio, said this will put him, and hundreds of others out of business, if this becomes law.

He works with more than 500 stores around Ohio that sell intoxicating hemp products.

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Ohio Lawmakers Pass Bill To Roll Back Voter-Approved Marijuana Law And Impose Hemp Restrictions, Sending It To Governor

The Ohio Senate has voted to concur with a House-amended bill to scale back the state’s voter-approved marijuana law and ban the sale of hemp products that fall outside of a recently revised federal definition for the crop unless they’re sold at licensed cannabis dispensaries.

The measure from Sen. Stephen Huffman (R) was substantively revised in the House last month, but the originating chamber voted 22-7 on Tuesday to accept those changes and send the legislation to Gov. Mike DeWine’s (R) desk.

The legislation now pending the governor’s signature would recriminalize certain marijuana activity that was legalized under a ballot initiative that passed in 2023  as well as remove anti-discrimination protections for cannabis consumers that were enacted under that law.

After the House revised the initial Senate-passed legislation, removing certain controversial provisions, the Senate quickly rejected those changes in October. That led to the appointment of a bicameral conference committee to resolve outstanding differences between the chambers. That panel then approved a negotiated form of the bill, which passed the House last month and has now cleared the Senate.

To advocates’ disappointment, the final version of the measure now heading to the governor’s desk would eliminate language in current statute providing anti-discrimination protections for people who lawfully use cannabis. That includes protections meant to prevent adverse actions in the context of child custody rights, the ability to qualify for organ transplants and professional licensing.

It would also recriminalize possessing marijuana from any source that isn’t a state-licensed dispensary in Ohio or from a legal homegrow. As such, people could be charged with a crime for carrying cannabis they bought at a legal retailer in neighboring Michigan.

Additionally, it would ban smoking cannabis at outdoor public locations such as bar patios—and it would allow landlords to prohibit vaping marijuana at rented homes. Violating that latter policy, even if it involves vaping in a person’s own backyard at a rental home, would constitute a misdemeanor offense.

The legislation would also replace what had been a proposed regulatory framework for intoxicating hemp that the House had approved with a broad prohibition on sales outside marijuana dispensaries following a recent federal move to recriminalize such products.

“In short, this bill leaves the crux of Issue 2 and marijuana access intact, while providing for several important public safety concerns and also regulations that protect Ohio children,” Huffman argued on the Senate floor ahead of Tuesday’s vote.

Sen. Bill DeMora (D), however, said the legislation undermines the will of voters.

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