U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican, has introduced a bill in Congress that would raise the THC level on hemp products and lightly regulate them nationally.
The Hemp Economic Mobilization Plan (HEMP) Act, among other requirements, would define “hemp” as containing up to 1% THC.
The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, better known as the Farm Bill, defined hemp as containing 0.3% of THC or less and helped usher in a new industry of low-dose, hemp-derived and synthetic products.
Paul’s HEMP Act also would require:
- Testing of hemp-derived products rather than hemp flower or the plant.
- Hemp shipments to be documented during transport and delivery.
“For years, I’ve led the fight in Washington to restore one of Kentucky’s most historically vital crops by legalizing industrial hemp,” Paul said in a statement.
“We achieved a hard-won victory, but there is still work to do to prevent the federal government from weighing down our farmers with unnecessary bureaucratic micromanaging
“My legislation will help this growing industry reach its full economic potential and bring transparency to government regulations.”
A competing bill, introduced last month by Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, would create a federal agency to enforce fresh regulations on Farm Bill-compliant hemp products in the United States and ban “artificially or synthetically derived cannabinoids of any kind.”
Congress is a year overdue in its Farm Bill update, which typically happens every five years.
