Connecticut advances bill to restrict hemp products

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Connecticut’s House of Representatives voted in favor of a bill that would restrict and regulate hemp products in the state.

House Bill 5150 passed by a 130-16 vote and will now go to the state Senate, according to CT News Junkie.

If approved, the bill would:

  • Amend the definition of high-THC products to include those containing 1 milligram of THC per serving and remove the differentiation of THC potency limits for various product types.
  • Remove hemp-derived products from groceries, convenience stores and pharmacies.
  • Allow social equity cultivators to partner with hemp producers and acquire licenses to make products outside disproportionately impacted areas.
  • Include tribal reservations in designated disproportionately impacted zones.

State governments have taken different approaches to regulating hemp-derived products that were made legal under the 2018 Farm Bill.

But Congress made movement on a new Farm Bill on Wednesday, when the Senate Agriculture Committee Democratic leadership and the House Agriculture Committee Republican leadership released their frameworks for a new piece of legislation.

“It’s already legal,” Republican state Rep. David Rutigliano told CT News Junkie, referencing hemp.

“We’re trying to regulate it in a way that makes it safer.”