Gov. Gavin Newsom outlaws THC in Hemp Products, What does this mean for YOU?
Since 2019, The United Cannabis Business Association has stood firm against the concerns of dangerous and intoxicating hemp products. These products had no regulatory or testing standards remotely comparable to legal cannabis being sold in licensed retail locations. “Hemp” products containing Delta-8, THCa, or other intoxicating cannabinoids claim to be completely “safe” and “non-psycho-active”. Hemp products like this are being sold all throughout California and the US. This problem grew exponentially in the last few years, with companies like BevMo now shipping these hemp products, gas stations and grocery stores with hemp products requiring no age limit, and children accessing and ingesting Delta-8 or a synthetic cannabinoid and suffering because of it.
We want to reassure the public that access to CBD & low THC products is not disappearing, High CBD & low THC products are already found in licensed cannabis retail locations throughout California. These CBD products can even be delivered right to your door. Go to your local dispensary and look for products high in CBD, you might even find a bit of THC or THCa works well to help you manage your pain. You can always get completely *THC free* CBD products from your local cannabis shop! There are tons of beverages and edible options available in the cannabis space for managing pain and anxiety. The growing and processing restrictions on cannabis are much more strict than the regulations on growing and processing hemp.
All licensed retailers screen entry to those adults above 21 (18+ with a medical recommendation), protecting younger children from accessing products that could contain intoxicating cannabinoids. The most important reason that Governor Newsom created this emergency regulation was to protect the children of California.
In 2021, When our request for a minimum age requirement was not accepted by the hemp industry, UCBA focused our legislative efforts on AB 45 (Aguiar-Curry). Through this bill, we achieved a ban on combustible hemp products. This protection was accepted in place of the minimum age requirement that the hemp industry rejected that year.
UCBA warned legislators and regulators of the dangers of synthetic intoxicating hemp products such as Delta-8 and the other intoxicating compounds that have come since. These warnings became language written into AB 45 (Aguiar-Curry), authorizing the California Department of Public Health to expand upon other hemp derivatives determined to be intoxicating. However, with the passing of AB 45 – UCBA cautioned legislators that without a funding mechanism for enforcement, such as a tax on hemp sold outside of cannabis stores, these illegal products would continue to threaten public health and undermine the legal cannabis industry.
The announcement by Governor Newsom proves evident that UCBA’s efforts to bring hemp into the regulated space were valid, that our efforts to hold back the exploitation of the loop-holes from AB 45, by the hemp industry, were legitimate and ultimately successful.
Thank you to Assemblymember Aguiar-Curry and the California Cannabis Industry Association for their sincere investigation and reconsideration of the effects hemp has had on the state of the cannabis industry and California as a whole. As we all consider the effects unrestricted, unregulated, minimally taxed hemp has brought about, we look to how we can bring hemp into a regulated and educated market more appropriate for it’s sale.
We deeply appreciate the collaboration with CCIA and Assemblymember Aguiar-Curry, championing regulations that protect our children and the legal cannabis industry, as seen in their hard work on this year’s bill AB 2223. UCBA would also like to thank the regional cannabis organizations, drug prevention organizations, and the cities and counties that have joined us over the years in advocating for responsible regulations of these dangerous hemp products.
Our organization looks forward to engaging in the legislative process in the coming years, in hopes of responsibly integrating hemp products into the cannabis supply chain. The incorporation of hemp products into a regulated market will promote public health, increase the tax revenue base, provide funding for enforcement, and possibly help limit the increase of the cannabis excise tax rate scheduled for 2025.
UCBA sincerely wishes to thank Governor Newsom for his leadership in achieving responsible reforms that protect our children and the legal cannabis industry. We look forward to navigating this change together.
For more info please contact UCBA President Jerred Kiloh.
jerred@ucba.com