…and still doesn’t know what to do about it

In 2018, Congress slipped a decimal point into law and, without meaning to, opened the gates to a new cannabis economy.

The Farm Bill’s definition of hemp (any cannabis plant with less than 0.3% delta-9 THC on a dry weight basis) was supposed to revive rope, seed oil, and maybe a wellness aisle or two. Instead, it gave birth to lab-cooked cannabinoids.

As expected, some people noticed what lawmakers didn’t: if hemp is legal so long as its delta-9 stays under the line, you can plant acres of it, strip out the CBD, and nudge the molecules into other substances. Delta-8. Delta-10. THCP. THC-O.

A new chemistry of cannabis, far from the natural experience of burning the flower.

The best part for these brave entrepreneurs is that it’s sort of legal.

In prohibition strongholds like Texas, you can’t buy a joint of real weed, but you can walk into a strip-mall vape shop and pick up hemp-derived highs. As always, the cracks in substance-based prohibition design gave birth to new productive practices.

What began as a dry legal definition mutated into an alchemy business that, for years, sat on gas station counters, truck stops, and e-commerce sites. A black-light market hiding in plain sight.

By 2024, the “intoxicating hemp” sector had already grown into a $28 billion market.

The Politics of a Decimal Point

Mitch McConnell thought he was saving Kentucky farmers when he wrote hemp into the Farm Bill. He pictured fields of fiber, a patriotic revival of rope and grain. Kentucky’s line against cannabis was firm, but hemp… that seemed safe.

Six years later, his decimal point has grown teeth. House Republicans like Mary Miller now want hemp narrowed to “naturally occurring, non-intoxicating cannabinoids,” a surgical strike aimed straight at delta-8. In the Senate, Debbie Stabenow wants to count “total THC,” closing off the raw biomass trade altogether. Draft appropriations language circulating in D.C. would simply erase hemp-derived products from the map.

This is highly unlikely to happen, given that the hemp lobby has risen together with its market.

I was at an academic congress recently in Rio de Janeiro, where a UN bureaucrat explained that the U.S. government, with carbon credits, aimed to kick off an economy that would eventually lead to the formation of lobbyists defending the policy that created them. Eventually, this would lock the policy in, which would be good for the planet, since every serious climate scientist agrees that if we don’t change course, we will see increasingly dramatic climate events. The problem is that, unfortunately, it didn’t happen. Economic interests weren’t enough to create a strong lobby, and the carbon credit market suffered when political winds shifted.

This is a good anecdote to reflect on hemp, where practically the exact opposite happened: the state unintentionally created a business and, when governments decided it was time to put it to rest, lobbyists were already powerful enough to resist. This happened in Florida, for instance, where the unlikely alliance between an anti-cannabis governor and a well-funded hemp lobby triumphed over the (much criticized) AM3.

These aren’t moral crusades so much as power struggles. On one side, the hemp lobby: processors, retailers, and growers, especially in the South, where cannabis is still illegal and hemp jobs are real. On the other hand, licensed cannabis operators argue the loophole is eating their market alive.

In California, the opposite situation played out: under Gavin Newsom, hemp-derived products were pushed out. Collateral damage included organic hemp wellness companies, suddenly criminalized overnight, and families that relied on hemp-based products for treating particularly rare diseases.

Conservative governors in farm states defend hemp. Liberal governors in cannabis states call for bans. Some sort of crop politics was formed.

Alchemy

Step away from the Capitol and the absurdity sharpens. A pre-roll infused with Delta-8 sits between Slim Jims and lottery tickets. Neon gummies, branded like candy, fall into shopping baskets with beer and gasoline. Online, cartridges ship across state lines in glossy packaging, indistinguishable from sneakers or supplements.

Also read: When Cannabis Brands Blur Into Youth Culture, Regulators Notice: Lessons From Tobacco’s Past

Before Newsom banned hemp-derived products, there were dozens of cannabis retailers in California moving from the legal cannabis space into hemp, including some big companies that decided to launch online stores.

Dispensary culture comes wrapped in vault doors, compliance manuals, and QR-coded lab results. Gas station weed thrives on convenience. No budtenders, no seed-to-sale, no tax lines. In half the country, the only cannabis you can buy freely is the one conjured through alchemy.

States Strike Back, States Look Away

The map is jagged. Colorado, New York, and Washington pulled intoxicating hemp into their cannabis frameworks: if it gets you high, test it, label it, tax it. Texas lawmakers voted to ban delta-8, only for a veto to keep the market alive, if shaky. Florida’s governor vetoed restrictions outright, delivering hemp lobbyists their biggest win against the biggest cannabis companies in the state, which burned around $100 million trying to make adult-use legal.

Elsewhere, compromises abound: Alabama licenses edibles but bans smokables. Nebraska toyed with criminal penalties so vague they might have hit ordinary consumers.

The Farm Bill legalized the workaround. In dry states, consumers buy it because there’s nothing else. In legal states, some drift to it because it’s cheaper, untaxed, and unburdened by 280E. The main justification for prohibiting these products in legal states has been the systematic targeting of children and phony labeling.

The real issue isn’t the cannabinoid; it’s the complete lack of oversight. When lab-made or hemp-derived products are pumped out with no testing, no dosing accuracy, and no accountability, consumers get burned and the entire plant takes the hit. But it doesn’t have to be that way. THCa flower grown with real genetics, properly lab-tested, labeled, and sold transparently, can be just as safe and effective as any dispensary product. The difference isn’t hemp versus cannabis. The difference is standards versus chaos.

Prohibition Doesn’t Work

There’s another path. Experts agree that prohibiting a molecule is ridiculous: scientists haven’t even been able to describe every cannabinoid in the plant. 

What we know is a drop; what we don’t know is an ocean.

Regulators could admit that cannabinoids are cannabinoids, whether coaxed from hemp or cut from cannabis. One framework, one set of standards, one tax regime. License the labs, test the batches, label them clearly, and tax rationally.

Of course, that would mean dragging gas station weed out of the neon blur and into the same daylight as dispensary flower. It needs conviction and guts because entrenched interests have already been created.

Editor’s Note: High Times believes in safe access to all forms of cannabis. That’s why our own THCa line is lab-tested, terp-rich flower, not gas station mystery products. If policymakers are serious about consumer safety, this is what the standard should look like.

Cover image made with AI

New Hampshire lawmakers are gearing up for a busy 2026 session when it comes to cannabis and psychedelics, filing at least a dozen requests for legislative staff to draft reform bills they plan to file next year.

That includes proposals to legalize adult-use marijuana for commercial and non-commercial use, protect gun rights for medical cannabis patients, let dispensaries operate on a for-profit basis, revise the definition of hemp, allow the therapeutic use of psilocybin in a clinical setting and repeal the state’s controlled drug statutes altogether.

Three of the measures concern cannabis legalization, which has consistently stalled in the legislature over recent years. One would provide for a regulatory model where adults could access products from retailers, while two would legalize the personal possession and use of marijuana without a commercial model.

One of the marijuana legalization requests, filed by Rep. Jonah Wheeler (D), is a proposed constitutional amendment that, if approved by the legislature, would put the reform issue on the ballot for voters to determine.

Sen. Donovan Fenton (D), who filed a separate legalization proposal, said that part of the motivation is for the state to catch up with its neighbors.

“You know, every state around us has legalized it,” he told The Keene Sentinel. “They’re not having issues with it. And it would be a great revenue driver.”

Two bicameral Republican members are sponsoring bills aimed at ensuring that the gun rights of registered medical cannabis patients would not be infringed, at least at the state level, simply for using marijuana in compliance with state law.

Another set of proposals touch on psychedelics policy, with two bills that would allow the therapeutic use of psilocybin in a regulated medical setting and another that would facilitate New Hampshire’s participation in a “multi-state consortium” dealing with clinical trials investigating the potential of ibogaine to treat substance misuse disorder.

Meanwhile, Rep. Aidan Ankarberg (I) pre-filed a measure simply meant to strike the state’s Controlled Drug Act, which theoretically would legalize all currently illicit substances.

Here’s the list of notable cannabis and psychedelic bill requests for the 2026 session:

• Sen. Donovan Fenton (D): relative to the legalization and regulation of cannabis and making appropriations therefor.
• Rep. Jared Sullivan (D): legalizing certain quantities of cannabis.
• Rep. Jonah Wheeler (D): relative to the personal possession of cannabis. Providing that adults 21 years of age or older shall have the right to possess a modest amount of cannabis intended for their personal consumption.
• Sen. Keith Murphy (R): relative to the right of therapeutic cannabis patients to purchase, possess, and transfer firearms in accordance with state law.
• Rep. Tom Mannion (R): providing that an individual’s use of therapeutic cannabis shall not disqualify the individual from the purchase, ownership, or possession of a firearm.
• Sen. Daniel Innis (R): allowing alternative treatment centers to operate for profit.
• Sens. Bill Gannon (R) and Regina Birdsell (R), along with Reps. Michael Vose (R), James Creighton (R), Liz Barbour (R) and Lilli Walsh (R): relative to duties and reporting requirements of the therapeutic cannabis medical oversight board.
• Sen. Donovan Fenton (D): relative to the definition of hemp.
• Rep. Michael Moffett (R): allowing the use of psilocybin in approved clinical settings to treat qualified medical conditions.
• Rep. Buzz Scherr (D): authorizing the medical use of psilocybin through a program established in the department of health and human services.
• Rep. Michael Moffett (R): relative to the state’s participation in a multistate consortium to conduct clinical trials using ibogaine as an investigational new drug for the treatment of substance use disorder and any other neurological or mental health conditions for which ibogaine demonstrates efficacy.
• Rep. Aidan Ankarberg (I): repealing the controlled drug act.

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Marijuana Moment is tracking hundreds of cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.

Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.
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Earlier this month, meanwhile, a New Hampshire House Finance subcommittee advanced a bill to allow medical marijuana dispensaries in the state to convert from non-profit organizations to for-profit businesses.

Another New Hampshire House committee recently discussed plans to move forward with a bill to legalize marijuana altogether–even though members accept that it is unlikely to advance beyond the chamber given opposition in the Senate and the threat of a veto by the governor.

“We know where it’s going to go. Let’s send a virtue signal,” the sponsor of the legalization proposal, Rep. Jared Sullivan (D), said during a House Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee hearing last month. “Let them be the ones that are pissing off voters who care about this.”

Sullivan ultimately made a persuasive defense of moving forward with his original bill, pointing out that the House has repeatedly passed similar legalization legislation and that the chamber should stand its ground, forcing the Senate and governor to again go on record with their opposition to a policy popular among voters.

Meanwhile, after the House added provisions to a Senate-passed bill that would allow medical marijuana patients to grow cannabis at home, those measures were stripped in conference.

Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R) also said in August that her position on marijuana legalization would not change even if the federal government moved forward with rescheduling the plant—a policy change President Donald Trump is actively considering.

“If federal law changes, I have to comply with federal law,” Ayotte said. “But my position has been, and continues to be, that we should not legalize marijuana in the future.”

Image element courtesy of Kristie Gianopulos.

[PRESS RELEASE] – LAKELAND, Fla., Oct. 22, 2025 – Metrc, a leading provider of regulatory track-and-trace systems for highly regulated industries, announced it will host in-person roadshows throughout New York to help licensed businesses prepare for the state’s implementation of Metrc as the track-and-trace system of record.

The New York in-person events will include important information to help licensees understand the Metrc system, supporting a smooth implementation. Sessions will cover how to gain access to the system and set up your licensed business, as well as best practices for operational success.

Metrc will also conduct two live webinars for testing facilities on Oct. 23 and for third-party integrators on Oct. 29, and will host the following sessions, listed below, for all other license types. New York licensees can secure tickets, free of charge, at the links below.

Nov. 3, 2025 – Buffalo, N.Y.

Nov. 5, 2025 – Albany, N.Y.

Nov. 6, 2025 – Long Island, N.Y.

Nov. 7, 2025 – New York City

As part of Metrc’s phased onboarding approach, credentialing will be available for laboratory testing facilities as early as Oct. 31 and for all other license types on Nov. 7. All businesses will be required to use the Metrc system with a target date of Dec. 17.

For more information, visit: Metrc New York Partner Page and OCM Website.