Delta-8 THC products sold in Kentucky after Aug. 1, 2023, will be subject to product testing, labeling and age-restriction requirements under a bipartisan bill passed by both chambers of the state Legislature.
Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear is expected to sign the bill into law, Kentucky Health News reported.
A national leader in hemp production, Kentucky is the latest state to move to regulate products containing hemp-derived intoxicating cannabinoids, including delta-8 THC, an isomer of the more prevalent delta-9 THC.
Just last month, lawmakers in Virginia approved tough restrictions on delta-8 products that hemp advocates say would wreck the existing industry.
Both cannabinoids exist naturally in the cannabis plant, but delta-8 THC has soared in popularity across the United States since the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which legalized hemp production and products nationwide.
Last fall, after a Kentucky court decision affirmed that delta-8 THC is legal, Beshear issued an executive order for state regulators to impose labeling and packaging requirements on such products sold in the state.
In response, the Legislature passed House Bill 544, which calls for state health regulators to establish testing and labeling requirements “for contaminants” as well as active ingredients by August 1.
The bill also clarifies delta-8 products can’t be sold to anyone younger than 21.
