A bipartisan coalition of 39 state and territory attorneys general is calling on Congress to clarify the federal definition of hemp and impose regulations preventing the sale of intoxicating cannabinoid products.
In a letter sent to the Republican chairs of the House and Senate Appropriations and Agriculture Committees on Friday, members of the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) expressed concerns with provisions of the 2018 Farm Bill that legalized hemp, which they said has been “wrongly exploited by bad actors to sell recreational synthetic THC products across the country.”
They’re asking that lawmakers leverage the appropriations process, or the next iteration of the Farm Bill, to enact policy changes that “leave no doubt that these harmful products are illegal and that their sale and manufacture are criminal acts.”
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin (R), Connecticut Attorney General William Tong (D), Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita (R) and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (D) led the letter, underscoring the bipartisan sentiment driving the call for congressional action.
“Intoxicating hemp-derived THC products have inundated communities throughout our states due to a grievously mistaken interpretation of the 2018 Farm Bill’s definition of ‘hemp’ that companies are leveraging to pursue profits at the expense of public safety and health,” they wrote. “Many of these products—created by manufacturers by manipulating hemp to produce synthetic THC—are more intoxicating and psychoactive than marijuana a Schedule I controlled substance and are often marketed to minors.”
While the debate over revising federal hemp laws has been a consistent talking point this year, with attempts in both chambers to enact a ban on products containing THC, so far such restrictions have only been implemented at the state level.
“Unless Congress acts, this gross distortion of the 2018 Farm Bill’s hemp provision will continue to fuel the rapid growth of an under-regulated industry that threatens public health and safety and undermines law enforcement nationwide,” the letter says.
“Congress never meant to legalize these products in the 2018 Farm Bill. A proper interpretation of the Farm Bill’s hemp provision demonstrates that the entire synthetic THC industry rests on a foundation of illicit conduct,” it continues. “Clear direction from Congress is needed to shut down this industry before it metastasizes further into an even greater threat to public safety than it already is.”
The top state and territory law enforcement officials raised the alarm about the fact that, while hemp is defined as cannabis containing no more than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC by dry weight, the natural cannabinoids in hemp such as CBD can be synthesized into intoxicating compounds such as delta-8 THC, delta-10 THC and HHC.
“In this way, legal, nonintoxicating hemp is used to make Frankenstein THC products that get adults high and harm and even kill children,” they said.
“State efforts to outlaw hemp-derived psychoactive products to protect their citizens cannot solve this problem. Such efforts can only lead to an uneven and ineffectual patchwork of bans and regulations that differ from State to State and will not stop the flood of mail-order THC products from streaming through interstate commerce. Congress must act to salvage the 2018 Farm Bill’s laudable legalization of commercial hemp from the psychoactive hemp industry’s spoliation of the Bill’s hemp provision.”
Other signatories on the letter include the attorneys general of Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, U.S. Virgin Islands, Utah, Vermont, Virginia and Wyoming.
“Importantly, the prohibition on products containing intoxicating levels of THC—of any kind and no matter how it is derived—will not inhibit the cultivation of hemp for industrial and agricultural uses since hemp does not contain intoxicating levels of THC,” they said. “The original goal of the 2018 Farm Bill’s hemp provision can still be effectuated while Congress also eliminates the dangerous and illegal drug market that has been created through incorrect interpretations of the Farm Bill.”
“We commend your commitment to American farmers and your work to create an orderly and well-regulated market for industrial hemp and non-intoxicating hemp-derived products,” the letter concludes. “You should not allow irresponsible corporations to take advantage of your good work to purvey dangerous products in our States. We ask Congress to act decisively to clarify the Farm Bill’s definition of hemp to ensure intoxicating THC products are taken off the market.”
That’s a particularly bold ask that industry stakeholders say could jeopardize the hemp market altogether. While there’s generally consensus around the idea that intoxicating cannabinoid products shouldn’t be accessible to youth or sold in an unregulated manner, businesses feel a middle-ground with age-gating and rules to ensure certain safety and advertising standards are met would be a superior approach.
Meanwhile, a GOP senator is hoping to replace a proposed ban on hemp THC products with alternate appropriations language mandating a study into state regulatory models for consumable cannabinoids. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) is circulating legislative language that he’s asking to be adopted as part of the final package.
The agriculture appropriations measure the Senate passed as part of a package over the summer initially contained provisions hemp industry stakeholders said would effectively eradicate the market by banning consumable hemp products with any “quantifiable” amount of THC. But after the measure came out of committee, Paul threatened to hold up its passage over the issue, and the language was removed.
Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who ushered in the federal legalization of hemp under the 2018 Farm Bill, championed the THC criminalization language and took to the floor to criticize those who opposed the ban, including Paul.
Meanwhile, Paul recently filed a standalone bill that would go in the opposite direction of the hemp ban, proposing to triple the concentration of THC that the crop could legally contain, while addressing multiple other concerns the industry has expressed about federal regulations.
The senator introduced the legislation, titled the Hemp Economic Mobilization Plan (HEMP) Act, in June. It mirrors versions he’s sponsored over the last several sessions.
