Senate Democrats’ Proposed Changes To Federal Hemp Laws Could ‘Eliminate A Whole Range Of Products’
Senate Democrats have released the long-awaited text of an agriculture bill that contains several proposed changes to federal hemp laws—including provisions to amend how the legal limit of THC is measured and reducing regulatory barriers for farmers who grow the crop for grain or fiber. But certain stakeholders are concerned that part of the intent of the legislation is to “eliminate a whole range of products” that are now sold in the market.
About six months after publishing an initial summary of the legislation, the Democratic majority on the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee shared the full text of its 2024 Farm Bill on Monday.
One key component of the legislation concerns the definition of hemp. As currently enacted, a crop is considered federally legal hemp if it contains no more than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC by dry weight. That would be revised under the new bill, making it so hemp would have to be tested for “total THC” content, including cannabinoids such as delta-8 THC and THC-A, and not just delta-9.
That could theoretically lead to a significant upheaval of the hemp industry as it has evolved since the crop was federally legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill, restricting not only the varieties of plants that could be cultivated but also the products that would be permitted in the marketplace. Lawmakers have been increasingly targeting intoxicating cannabinoid products that have proliferated in recent years.
Read the full story at Marijuana Moment
