INDUSTRY UPDATES

September 06, 2024

Major Setback in California, Favorable Federal Court Ruling, and Updates in Georgia and Oregon

Check out the latest legislative updates across the states and take action today!

California

Just a few weeks ago, we were celebrating the defeat of California AB 2223. But today, Governor Gavin Newsom announced emergency regulations to effectuate what the legislature did not. The emergency regulations, which could go into effect in as soon as 15 days, include a total ban on THC in food beverage, and dietary supplement products. This ban would eliminate virtually all hemp products from retail sale, and the remaining products would be limited to persons 21 or older. We’ve only had a few hours with the emergency regulations, but we’re already planning for a major fight. Stay tuned for updates on how you can help.

Jonathan Miller, General Counsel to the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, issued the following statement to the press on this development:

“Today’s “emergency” action by Governor Newsom is a betrayal of California hemp farmers, small businesses, and adult consumers. After having supported AB 45, which created a sound regulatory framework for the manufacture and sale of hemp products, Newsom’s Administration fell on the job and failed to take any steps to enforce it.  Now, instead of addressing legitimate regulatory concerns shared by all good actors in the cannabis space – such as establishing reasonable policies to keep intoxicating products out of the hands of children — Governor Newsom instead has proposed a complete retail prohibition on 90-95% of popular hemp products for adults, including most non-intoxicating CBD products that he purports to support in his public communications.  And in the middle of massive California budget deficits, he is unnecessarily throwing away nearly a quarter billion dollars in tax revenue from legitimate small businesses. We will be exploring all legal options in the coming days with California hemp farmers and businesses that comprise the multi-billion-dollar industry that this action would destroy.”

Federal

There’s great news from the federal courts—in a decision published this week, the Fourth Circuit reaffirmed that hemp products are federally legal. The court agreed with the Ninth Circuit’s ruling in the AK Futures case that the 2018 Farm Bill protects all hemp-derived products with 0.3% or less delta-9 THC on a dry weight basis. According to the court, this includes delta-8 THC and THC-O when manufactured from naturally occurring hemp.

Georgia

There’s a lot going on in Georgia. The period for commenting on the Department of Agriculture’s proposed rules for hemp products ended today. Thanks to your feedback, the Roundtable submitted comments expressing concerns about several of the proposed rules. You can read our comments here. Public comments and the adoption of the proposed rules will be considered at a hearing next Monday, September 9.

The Georgia Department of Revenue recently issued a policy bulletin that, starting October 1, consumable hemp beverages may not be sold in liquor stores. Under Georgia law, the only non-alcoholic beverages that liquor stores can sell are beverages used as mixers. Because SB 454 and the proposed rules prohibit hemp beverages that contain alcohol or constitute an alcoholic beverage, they may not be sold as mixers in liquor stores.

View Our Georgia Comments Here

Oregon

Similar to Georgia, Oregon proposed rules for implementing its newest hemp law. That omnibus cannabis law—HB 4121—establishes registration, annual fee, labeling, and packaging requirements for consumable hemp products that contain cannabinoids, and directs the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission to adopt standards for approving hemp products that contain artificially derived cannabinoids. We are still reviewing the proposed rules and plan to submit written comments by the September 27 deadline. Please review the proposed rules, and let us know your thoughts by Monday, September 23.

Submit Your Comments Here

Visit our State Action Center to see active campaigns across the country!

State Action Center

Check out the latest hemp and CBD updates from across the states!