(NewsWorthy.news) – A coalition of 22 state attorneys general has called on Congress to deal with the “glaring vagueness” that has resulted in legal marijuana being sold over the counter, from vending machines and online.
The letter sent on March 20, 2023 highlighted the consequences of Republican lawmakers’ decision to legalize the production of hemp in the 2018 omnibus Farm Bill. The attorneys general are arguing that the decision inadvertently resulted in a multibillion-dollar market of cannabis products that are both intoxicating and classed as legal by the federal government. The coalition is now pleading with Congress to shut down the market it may have helped create. The attorneys general are calling for the legislature of the Farm Bill to enshrine in law the idea that intoxicating cannabis is federally classed as illegal.
The issue highlights the confusion around drawing a clear line between recreational cannabis high in THC and industrial hemp or CBD that is low in THC. The strict measures put in place to counter this make CBD more expensive to legally grow and buy. CBD has become increasingly popular in recent years and industrial hemp is used in a variety of products such as organic skincare, health foods, textiles, biofuels and more.
Hemp production is legal in several countries, however, where laws against cultivating and possessing recreational cannabis still apply. Under the Farm Bill hemp producers must acquire a hemp license and file an acreage report that clearly identifies the use of the hemp acreage. The attorneys general wrote that the ambiguity created by the 2018 Farm Bill created an estimated $28 billion market of intoxicating cannabis regardless of its legal status in different states.
The bipartisan coalition has united representatives from a variety of states where both the governing party and the legal status of the drug differ. The legalization of hemp production in the Farm Bill by an all-Republican Congress resulted in hemp or CBD becoming legal and recreational cannabis or marijuana entering a legal gray area. Patrick Cournoyer, who leads the FDA’s Cannabis Product Committee, dismissed the “myth” that the agency’s initial investigation around CBD gave the recreational cannabis industry the green light. He pointed out the position of then-commissioner Scott Gottlieb, who said in 2018 that Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act regulations made selling CBD or THC across state lines illegal, regardless of the type of cannabis.
Copyright 2024, NewsWorthy.news
