Politics
Our political journalists are based in the Maine State House and have deep source networks across the partisan spectrum in communities all over the state. Their coverage aims to cut through major debates and probe how officials make decisions. Read more Politics coverage here.
Intoxicating hemp-derived products that have popped up in Maine stores with few regulations would get banned under a new bill gaining bipartisan support in Washington.
Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, wants to close a loophole he overlooked in the 2018 Farm Bill that legalized hemp, which is cannabis containing less than 0.3 percent of THC, the main psychoactive compound in marijuana.
His sweeping bill did not regulate more potent hemp-derived products containing hundreds of milligrams of THC that are not subject to the rules or taxes facing marijuana. That has led to intoxicating hemp-derived drinks, edibles and other products being sold online or outside of state-regulated markets including the medical and adult-use ones in Maine.
States have generally moved slowly to regulate the products, though Gov. Janet Mills allowed in June an emergency bill from Rep. Tiffany Strout, R-Harrington, that requires buyers to be at least 21 years old to become law immediately without her signature.
The hemp industry prefers the existing federal rules, but public health and cannabis groups have warned the products have opaque lists of ingredients and more THC than recommended. McConnell, who is not seeking reelection next year, wants to close the loophole before he retires and called it an “unintended consequence” of the bill he signed with a hemp pen.
The Senate Appropriations Committee chaired by U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, unanimously approved earlier this month an agriculture spending bill that includes the redefinition from McConnell and U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, along with an amendment to delay implementation for one year.
Not all hemp allies are happy, with U.S. Hemp Roundtable Chair Jonathan Miller saying it will ban more than 90 percent of hemp products and U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, arguing his home state colleague’s effort will “completely destroy the American hemp industry.”
State Rep. David Boyer, R-Poland, who helped lead Maine’s marijuana legalization efforts that included a 2016 referendum, said Monday the intoxicating products “are a clear symptom of prohibition.”
Lizzy Hayes, a farmer in the Somerset County town of Cornville who grows non-intoxicating hemp products, said CBD oil and other items with traces of THC that she uses to treat anxiety in dogs would get caught up in the ban, though McConnell’s office disputes that. Hayes added that a ban would be “a huge step backwards.”
Supporters of more rules on the potent hemp products argued they are easy for younger buyers and consumers unaware of their potency to get their hands on. With “little oversight, and deceptive marketing that can mimic a harmless seltzer, it’s easy for people to accidentally consume intoxicating hemp products and potentially drive impaired, or even buy them for their kids,” Matt Wellington, associate director of the Maine Public Health Association, said.
“This latest action is a welcome example of lawmakers coming together across the political spectrum to keep communities safe,” Wellington said.
While McConnell’s proposal and a similar proposal from Rep. Andy Harris, R-Maryland, have won bipartisan support, their ultimate fate is up in the air. President Donald Trump, who has not directly commented on banning intoxicating hemp, called on Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, to cancel an August recess in order to get more of his nominees confirmed. Congress is facing pressure to pass all spending bills by a Sept. 30 shutdown deadline or operate once again under short-term funding deals.
