Tag: hemp

Congress Accidentally Legalized Weed Six Years Ago

Drive through durham, north carolina, where I live, and you might get the impression that marijuana is legal here. Retail windows advertise thc in glittery letters and neon glass, and seven-pointed leaves adorn storefronts and roadside sandwich boards. The newest business near my house is the Stay Lit Smoke Shop, where an alien ripping a bong invites you to use the drive-through.

In fact, neither medical nor recreational marijuana is legal in North Carolina. Technically, we’re getting high on hemp.

This is probably not what Congress had in mind when it passed the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, commonly called the 2018 Farm Bill, which made the production of hemp—cannabis’s traditionally nonpsychoactive cousin—legal for the first time in nearly a century. Lawmakers who backed hemp legalization expected the plant to be used for textiles and nonintoxicating supplements, such as CBD oil and shelled hemp seeds (great on an acai bowl). They didn’t realize that, with some chemistry and creativity, hemp can get you just as high as the dankest marijuana plant.

The upshot is that although recreational marijuana use is allowed in only 24 states and Washington, D.C., people anywhere in the U.S. can get intoxicated on hemp-derived THC without breaking federal law. These hemp-based highs are every bit as potent as those derived from the marijuana available in legalization states. I know this because I’ve tried recreational pot in California and Colorado, as well as 11 different hemp-derived intoxicants legally available here in North Carolina. I am not exaggerating when I say that they are indistinguishable in effect. In other words, six years ago, Congress inadvertently legalized weed across the entire United States.

Keep reading

DeSantis Anti-Marijuana Legalization Campaign Gets $100K Donation From Cannabis Exec As Hemp Businesses Pledge $5M To State GOP

Amid new reporting that Florida-based hemp businesses are rallying behind Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R) campaign to defeat a marijuana legalization initiative—with an apparent pledge from hemp executives to donate $5 million to the Republican party as it works to oppose the effort—one particular cannabis-affiliated company has come under the spotlight after contributing a $100,000 boost to the governor’s so-called “Florida Freedom Fund” after its initially tepid fundraising start.

This comes weeks after the governor vetoed a bill to ban most consumable hemp products in a move that some suspect was at least partly meant to garner the industry’s favor in his anti-marijuana crusade.

DeSantis launched the political action committee—which is targeting both the legalization measure and a separate abortion rights initiative that will appear on the November ballot—last month. It has about $121,000 on hand, the bulk of which comes from POB Ventures, which is linked to a medical cannabis worker training institution and a chain of hemp businesses.

In an exclusive interview with Marijuana Moment, the CEO of POB Ventures, Patrick O’Brien, said he’s not against adult-use cannabis legalization in principle—but is instead troubled by the specific language of the ballot initiative because it provides an option, rather than a mandate, for regulators to approve additional licenses. He suggested the framework could create a monopolized cannabis economy that primarily benefits the state’s existing medical marijuana companies, including the multi-state operators such as Trulieve that have primarily financed the legalization campaign.

“If you look very closely at the writing, they just messed up—and it was with full intent to mess this up,” O’Brien, who also runs the education platform Sativa University and the cannabis product company Chronic Guru, argued. “All they had to do was make a simple change from ‘may’ issue more licenses to ‘must’ issue more licenses, and we would have had a recreational market.”

By giving regulators that licensing discretion, the measure could effectively kneecap prospective businesses outside of the existing medical cannabis space, he claims.

But there’s been criticism of the major contribution to the DeSantis PAC, which O’Brien says he will continue to support beyond the initial donation.

Keep reading

South Dakota Law Banning Intoxicating Hemp Products Takes Effect After Judge Declines To Block It

A new law barring the production or sale of high-inducing, hemp-derived cannabis products will take effect Monday after a judge declined to block it.

Hemp Quarters 605, a Pierre-based shop that sells those products, filed a lawsuit earlier this month in U.S. District Court in South Dakota. The business claims the new law’s provisions are unconstitutional and in conflict with federal law.

The 2018 federal Farm Bill legalized the production and sale of industrial hemp and hemp-derived products, provided they contain less than 0.3 percent of the intoxicating compound delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, known as THC, by dry weight.

House Bill 1125, signed into law in March by Gov. Kristi Noem (R), targets five types of chemicals that appear at low levels in hemp plants. The chemicals can be synthesized and added in amounts large enough for hemp products to ape the intoxicating effects of the delta-9 THC found in marijuana.

Marijuana remains illegal at the federal level, even though it’s legal in some states and medical marijuana is legal in South Dakota.

A violation of the new law will be a class 2 misdemeanor, the state’s lowest-level criminal offense. Like most laws adopted by the Legislature, its effective date is July 1.

Products like gummies, vape pens and smokable hemp containing the chemicals targeted by the new law are widely available across South Dakota. They’re sold in gas stations, grocery and liquor stores and in specialty smoke shops like Hemp Quarters 605.

Keep reading

Most Consumable Hemp-Based Cannabinoid Products Would Be Banned Under Another GOP Committee’s New Bill

A GOP-led House committee has put forward a large-scale spending bill that contains language that would effectively ban most consumable hemp-derived cannabinoid products, including delta-8 THC and CBD items containing any “quantifiable” amount of THC.

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies posted the text of the legislation on Monday—just one day before a scheduled vote.

If enacted into law, cannabinoids that are “synthesized or manufactured outside of the plant” would no longer meet the definition of legal hemp.

The language is virtually identical to a provision of the 2024 Farm Bill that was attached by a separate committee late last month via an amendment from Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL).

The proposed ban faced sizable pushback from the hemp industry, though certain key marijuana businesses have joined prohibitionists in supporting the proposed policy change.

Many observers expect that the timeline for advancing the Farm Bill will be pushed back until next year, however, so the hemp provision’s inclusion in a must-pass spending bill raises the stakes for hemp industry advocates.

Supporters of the ban have described the language as a fix to a “loophole” that was created under the 2018 Farm Bill that federally legalized hemp.

While they’ve focused on the need to address public safety concerns related to unregulated “intoxicating” cannabinoid products such as delta-8 THC, some hemp industry advocates say the effect of the proposed language could be a ban on virtually all non-intoxicating CBD products as well, as most on the market contain at least trace levels of THC, consistent with the Farm Bill definition of hemp that allows for up to 0.3 percent THC by dry weight.

Hemp industry stakeholders have recognized that there’s a need to address legitimate concerns related to the unregulated market that’s proliferated since hemp was federally legalized, but the solution they’ve put forward is to enact strategic regulations to ensure product safety and prevent youth access.

Keep reading

Louisiana Lawmakers Make Big Changes To State’s Medical Marijuana And Hemp Laws

Louisiana’s edible hemp industry survived a close call with state lawmakers who chose stricter regulations over a complete dismantling. Also, the state has forced the two public universities with exclusive rights to medical cannabis farming in Louisiana to transfer their duopoly to two private companies.

The revamped hemp products proposal, House Bill 952, sponsored by Rep. Dustin Miller (D-Opelousas), passed the House in a 72–30 vote and cleared the Senate 26–11 in the final hour of the legislative session Monday.

Miller’s legislation will, among other things, lower the potency of recreational hemp edibles from 8 milligrams to 5 mg of THC per serving and ban them from convenience stores that sell fuel. THC is an acronym for tetrahydrocannabinol, the psychoactive compound in cannabis.

Restaurants and bars that currently hold alcohol and hemp permits will be able to continue selling hemp products, but the bill will stop the state from issuing any new hemp permits for alcohol establishments.

Final passage came after a compromise that left both sides disappointed.

“No one likes it,” Miller told his colleagues as they peppered him questions and expressed frustration with the final version. He said he was backing the compromise proposal because that was the commitment he made with some lawmakers who supported a competing proposal that would have criminalized all recreational THC products and dismantled the entire hemp industry.

Rep. Jason DeWitt (R-Boyce) criticized the legislation for arbitrarily banning hemp only from convenience stores that sell fuel.

“We’re gonna discriminate against stores that sell fuel versus ones that do not?” DeWitt asked. “We gave them a permit, and we’re basically gonna put them out of business?”

Miller agreed the ban doesn’t make much sense but said it was a way to appease the bill’s opponents who wanted hemp banned from all convenience stores.

Keep reading

Major Alcohol Industry Group Pushes Congress For ‘Critical Action’ To Regulate Consumable Hemp Products, Rather Than Ban Them

A major alcohol industry association is calling on congressional leaders to create a regulatory framework for hemp-based intoxicating cannabinoids—rather than impose an outright ban as is proposed under a large-scale agriculture bill that’s advancing in the House.

In a letter sent to House and Senate Agriculture Committee leaders on Wednesday, Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA) urged “critical action to ensure that intoxicating hemp products sold across the country are safe for consumers” as lawmakers work to advance the 2024 Farm Bill.

“We strongly advocate for clear federal rules and regulations that define intoxicating hemp compounds and to grant states the authority to regulate these products within their borders,” the alcohol trade association said.

The letter comes about a week after the House Agriculture Committee approved an amendment to the 2024 Farm Bill that would effectively ban most consumable hemp products—a proposal that saw some ideological splintering within the cannabis sector.

Ahead of that vote, WSWA said the “attempt to ban intoxicating hemp products is merely doubling down on the failed federal policy of prohibition.” But in this latest letter, the association used more tempered language. While it said a regulatory framework would be ideal, it also suggested Congress could enact legislation that also allows individual states to ban the products altogether.

Keep reading

Adding CBD Or THC To Food Or Drinks Is Illegal, Massachusetts Officials Say In New Memo

Massachusetts agencies have declared that intoxicating hemp-based products can not be sold outside of licensed dispensaries and have tasked local boards of health to enforce what they say is federal law.

On Wednesday, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and Department of Agricultural Resources released a joint notice in order to address the recent influx of hemp-based products like gummies and drinks that contain the same active ingredient as cannabis products. The notice made explicit that the “addition of CBD and/or THC to food manufactured or sold in Massachusetts is illegal.”

This action by the two state agencies reflects what they have been saying about the legality of these products. Now, with the advisory, they have made the guidance explicit and have charged local boards of health to enforce it.

Following the notice, the Alcohol Beverage Control Commission warned its licensees that their licenses could be suspended or revoked if they are caught selling hemp-derived products.

“This is a big win for both the cannabis and the hemp industry, specifically those who are licensed by the CCC and MDAR,” said Ryan Dominguez, the head of the Massachusetts Cannabis Coalition. “This is a step in the right direction for us to be able to now enforce what was already on the books so there’s no kind of gray area.”

Intoxicating hemp products have been showing up in liquor stores, gas stations and smoke shops across the state because of a 2018 federal law that removed hemp from the definition of marijuana. There are many companies that have popped up to sell hemp products.

The hemp products, which are often marketed very similarly to cannabis products, are not regulated in the same way. Whereas cannabis products face strict regulations around testing, packaging, labeling, taxation and age restrictions, the hemp products have none of these requirements in Massachusetts.

Keep reading

Minnesota Marijuana Regulators Destroy Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars’ Worth Of Illegally Sold Hemp Flower

Since Minnesota began cracking down on the illegal sale of raw cannabis flower in many registered hemp retailers, its agents have confiscated a lot of product worth a fair amount of money.

According to numbers released by the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM), inspectors have confiscated and destroyed 12,094 units of flower—such as bags, jars or pre-rolled joints—with an estimated retail value of $278,000. The illegal products were taken from 58 different retail locations and amounted to nearly 73 pounds of raw cannabis flower.

While it has been legal to possess and use cannabis in Minnesota since last August, it is not yet legal to sell it and won’t be until sometime next spring. And while many hemp-derived low-potency products like gummies and beverages have been legal to sell since the summer of 2022, raw cannabis flower falls into a gray area. That is, if it has low THC content, it could be legal. But most of what has been sold exceeds the potency levels that separates hemp from marijuana.

If the confiscated products have likely been illegal under both the 2022 hemp-derived products law and the 2023 recreational cannabis law, why did it take this long for the state to crack down? Blame an inadvertent gap in the 2023 law that attempted to provide temporary state regulation of hemp products while the new Office of Cannabis Management was being set up.

The Office of Medical Cannabis was given temporary say over the two-year-old hemp-derived market but was not given control over raw flower, only products made from the plant like gummies and drinks.

That gap identified by regulators late last year allowed some stores to sell the flower that looks, smells and intoxicates like marijuana. At the same time, other retailers who wanted to follow the new law were left at a competitive disadvantage.

The raw flower was often sold as a hemp plant with high concentrations of THCA (tetrahydrocannabinolic acid). The same products are offered for sale from out-of-state businesses and mailed to customers where cannabis is not legal, or not yet legal as in Minnesota.

Keep reading

DeSantis Reportedly Plans To Veto Hemp Ban In Hopes Industry Will Help Defeat Marijuana Legalization Ballot Initiative

The governor of Florida is reportedly planning to veto a bill that would ban consumable hemp-derived cannabinoid products such as delta-8 THC, apparently because he’s hoping the hemp industry will help finance a campaign opposing a marijuana legalization initiative on the state’s November ballot.

As Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) prepares to step up his push against the legalization measure, officials close to the governor who spoke anonymously to CBS News say he’s plotting to leverage the hemp industry’s economic interest in participating in the intoxicating cannabinoid market to convince people to vote against marijuana reform.

DeSantis has made abundantly clear that he’s against marijuana legalization, arguing that the state shouldn’t go beyond the existing medical cannabis program and that broader reform would negatively impact the quality of life for Floridians.

But in the background, another cannabis battle has played out in the state legislature, with lawmakers in both chambers approving a bill to severely restrict consumable hemp products. It hasn’t been formally transmitted to the governor yet, but a source told the local news outlet that “he’s going to veto.”

“The marijuana people are furious,” they said, “and they are scrambling.”

Another source said there was “never a thought the governor would veto the bill,” but “they are now signaling that they are going to veto, and I think it would be fair to say he is leaning toward a veto.”

By vetoing the legislation, the governor is reportedly banking on hemp businesses returning the favor by aiding in his campaign to defeat the marijuana legalization initiative. It’s unclear if that would play out, but it is the case that certain leadership in the Florida Republican Party, which formally came out against Amendment 3 earlier this month, have close ties to the hemp industry.

The state party’s president and interim executive director, Evan Power and Bill Helmich, are both top lobbyists for the Florida Healthy Alternatives Association that represents hemp stakeholders.

Keep reading

Massachusetts Marijuana Regulator Calls Intoxicating Hemp Products A ‘Public Menace’

The Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) for the first time is raising concerns about intoxicating hemp products showing up in stores, restaurants and gas stations across Massachusetts, with commissioner Kimberly Roy calling them a “public menace.”

At a meeting of the commission last week, Roy and other commissioners said the largely unregulated products are putting more heavily regulated cannabis products at a disadvantage.

“I’ve heard from many of our licensees that [unregulated hemp is] impacting them greatly. It’s a phenomenon known as gas station weed,” said Roy. “These are hemp products that are unregulated, that aren’t tested, that our children can buy. It keeps me up at night, the concerns around this gas station weed.”

Intoxicating hemp products contain the same active ingredient as cannabis products but are regulated very differently. They are on shelves in the Commonwealth because of a 2018 federal law that removed hemp from the definition of marijuana. An entire industry has popped up around the country selling intoxicating hemp products.

Adam Terry, the CEO of Cantrip, a Boston beverage maker, said in a CommonWealth Beacon commentary last month that many of the hemp-based products are manufactured in Minnesota, which regulates them just as rigorously as marijuana products.

Previously, the Cannabis Control Commission had not taken a stance on the hemp products because the agency believes the product falls outside of its jurisdiction. But the agency, which regulates cannabis and hemp products that are sold inside cannabis dispensaries, is now preparing to testify before a joint legislative hearing on the hemp products before the cannabis policy and agricultural committees on July 11.

Roy offered to serve as the commission’s representative at the legislative hearing. She stressed that the unregulated hemp products are not tested or age restricted in the same way that cannabis products are.

“[Unregulated hemp products are] having a serious negative impact on our licensees who are bound by the law and bound by our regulations,” said Roy. “Then you have all these other convenience stores or smoke shops or gas stations who are not.”

Keep reading