California Love: AB 2223 “Suspended,” Likely Dead for the Year. It’s Time to Get to Work – Together

Hemp Supporters spoke. California legislators listened. The time for collaboration – hemp, cannabis and regulators – is now.

Yesterday, the California Senate Appropriations Committee refused to approve AB 2223 – the bill that posed an existential threat to hemp farmers and businesses. (Here’s our Wednesday statement on the potential impact.) Unless something surprising and unlikely happens in the next several days, the bill is defeated for the session, done for the year.

Thanks to all Hemp Supporters who sent thousands of emails to their legislators urging its defeat. Thanks to the Roundtable’s longtime lobbyist in Sacramento, Rand Martin, for his consistently great work on the ground. Particular thanks go out to our Members, SunMed, CV Sciences and Cheech and Chong, as well as the HBA and CBA, for providing crucial complementary advocacy efforts. We also extend our deepest gratitude to Senators Ben Allen and Steve Bradford for their commitment and hard work in supporting the hemp industry and ensuring that it continues to thrive in California.

Our work is not done. The war on hemp continues on Capitol Hill and in state capitals across the country. Moreover, in California, challenges remain. While the vast majority of hemp farmers, product manufacturers and retailers are small and family businesses who play by the rules and hold themselves to the highest standards, bad actors in our industry continue to manufacture products without quality control, label and package them insufficiently, and illegally target children. We also need to do a better job to promote equitable solutions for the entire cannabis industry.

Our message is consistent: It’s high time to robustly regulate hemp products sold at retail, not prohibit them. It’s time to require good manufacturing practices and truth in labeling, and to keep adult products away from children.

It’s also time for all stakeholders to work collaboratively on addressing these issues – the hemp and marijuana industries, state regulators, legislators and the Governor’s office. The US Hemp Roundtable extends its hand to these other stakeholders in a sincere mission to address legitimate concerns and ensure the safe provision of all hemp products.

We look forward to healthy dialogue in the months ahead and to finding a sound path for all in 2025. And we look forward to counting on all Hemp Supporters to continue to have their voices heard in Sacramento.