Michigan Hemp Bills Sail Through the House

The four Michigan hemp bills we initially reported on last week—HB 5058, HB 5060, HB 5061, and HB 5067—have all passed through the state House with strong support, and will soon be presented before the state Senate. 

As the U.S. Hemp Roundtable informed us, the bills passed with overwhelming support, boding well for the next phase in the process.

The bills intend to provide hemp product producers and consumers with various legal protections as a way of clarifying the legal confusion clouding the industry while the FDA continues to delay regulation.

These pro-hemp protections include, but are not limited to the following:

• Removing hemp-containing foods from the “adulterated” classification
• Removing the processor licensing requirement for qualified hemp growers looking to sell finished hemp products
• Amending the law that allowed parties harmed by hemp products made in violation of state law to have unlimited damages and automatic liability coverage
• Including hemp ingestibles and topical products in legally compliant hemp products, provided all qualifications are met

While Michigan moves in a decidedly pro-hemp direction, several more states are introducing a mixed bag of pro- and anti-hemp legislative proposals, including Illinois, Kansas, Utah, Missouri, and Washington.

In Illinois, HB 5201 would see the formation of a commission meant to analyze the “equity and the participation of socially disadvantaged farmers in all forms of agriculture, including hemp,” reported the U.S Hemp Roundtable. 

Kansas is looking to roll back a ban on smokable hemp products with HB 2076, which will open up the hemp product market considerably throughout the state.

However, Utah is tightening their stance on CBD with HB 385, which would ban smokable flower and the addition of CBD to food or beverage products, including a provision that illegalizes the transportation of said products out of the state.

A comparably staunch approach to cannabinoid-containing products is taking form in Missouri, where HB 2704 would ban all such products for anyone under 21 years of age.

Finally, Washington state is targeting cannabinoid-infused alcoholic beverages with SB 5940, which would prohibit any producer of alcoholic beverages from adding cannabinoids like THC or CBD to their products.

Readers can visit the US Hemp Roundtable’s State Action Center to make their voices heard as CBD consumers.