3 US Senators Plan to Let States ‘Opt Out’ of Intoxicating Hemp Product Ban

A trio of bipartisan U.S. senators is hoping to let state laws supersede the federal government’s forthcoming prohibition of intoxicating hemp products in a move to rescue the industry. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., filed the Hemp Safety Enforcement Act on April 16, alongside Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Joni Ernst, R-Iowa.

 

The legislation, Paul said, would allow states and tribal territories to “opt out” of the ban and instead regulate hemp-derived cannabinoid products through their own program structures, weakening the appropriations package that President Donald Trump signed in November, which redefines hemp to close a 2018 Farm Bill loophole beginning Nov. 12, 2026.

 

Read the full piece by Tony Lange in the Cannabis Business Times, by clicking here.