A proposed federal ban on THC would “erase” cannabis products that get people high

Ruling on A federal spending bill that could end the US government shutdown would effectively destroy the cannabis extract industry by banning intoxicating hemp-based THC products, including gummies and drinks.

The provision, part of a funding bill passed by the U.S. Senate on Monday night, would prohibit “the unregulated sale of hemp-based intoxicating products or hemp-derived products, including Delta 8, from being sold online, at gas stations, and convenience stores,” according to a summary of the legislation provided by the Senate Appropriations Committee. The bill, worth $26.65 billion, is being voted on in the House of Representatives on Wednesday. If passed, President Donald Trump is expected to sign it into law.

The hemp provision ends a loophole provided by the 2018 Farm Bill that essentially decriminalized intoxicating hemp-based products. These products include cannabinoids such as delta-8 and THCA, which are found in a variety of foods and drinks. However, the Farm Bill states that hemp products cannot contain more than 0.3 percent delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) by dry weight; Delta-9 is the main psychoactive compound in cannabis, which remains federally illegal. Both hemp and hemp come from the Cannabis sativa plant, but hemp contains very low levels of delta-9.

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul was the only Republican to vote against the spending bill on Monday after failing to amend the bill by repealing its cannabis ban. In September, dozens of Kentucky hemp growers sent a letter to fellow Sen. Mitch McConnell, who had been pushing for the ban, imploring him to reconsider.

The letter said the hemp-derived cannabis market “has given us — for the first time in decades — a new crop with real economic opportunity” and that prohibition would lead to “immediate and catastrophic consequences.”

According to a report by Cannabis Business Times, sales of hemp-derived cannabis will exceed $2.7 billion in 2023.

“This will ultimately destroy the industry and destroy hemp growers as well,” says attorney and cannabis advocate Jonathan Miller, adding that it will “eliminate” 95 percent of ingestible hemp.

While the provision states that it would keep “CBD and industrial hemp products non-intoxicating,” Miller disagrees, noting that the most popular hemp-derived CBD products still contain more than the proposed limit of 0.4 milligrams of THC per container. CBD products don’t make people high, but they are popular and used for things like insomnia and anxiety, although research on their effectiveness is still limited.