Industrial hemp bill introduced in state house
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CHEYENNE – House Bill 230, introduced in the Wyoming State Legislature on Tuesday, would offer Wyoming the chance to grow industrial hemp for research purposes, joining 20 others states in the development of what was once a standard American crop.
As defined by the bill, “Industrial hemp means all parts and varieties of the plant cannabis sativa, containing no more than three-tenths of one percent of (0.3%) of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).”
In accordance with Wyoming Statute 35-7-2103, industrial hemp is considered an agricultural crop in the state, and once state requirements are upheld, it is legal for a person to grow, harvest, posses, process and sell industrial hemp.
Under the bill, state licensing would be required to grow industrial hemp, after a criminal background check, fingerprint file, and licensing fees are approved by the state. Growers of the product (limited to an agriculture pilot program) would report to the state all buyers, and use only state-provided seeds, acquired from the state Department of Agriculture
According to a report by the National Conference of State Legislatures, at least 16 states have legalized industrial hemp production for commercial purposes. Twenty more states have passed laws allowing research and pilot programs. Colorado, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, North Dakota, Rhode Island and Virginia approved the creation of both research and
commercial programs. California, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Montana and Virginia have established a framework for regulating commercial hemp, yet still consider hemp illegal outside of research programs unless federal law changes.
In 2013, The National Farmers Union (NFU) updated its farm policy regarding hemp to urge the President, Attorney General, and Congress to “direct the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to reclassify industrial hemp as a non-controlled substance and adopt policy to allow American farmers to grow industrial hemp under state law without affecting eligibility for USDA benefits.”
The Hemp Industries Association (HIA), as reported by the Congressional Research Service (CRS), estimates that the total U.S. retail value of hemp products in 2013 was $581 million, which includes food and body products, clothing, auto parts, building materials and other products. Overall, the CRS has catalogued a total of 25,000 potential hemp products.
According to a 2015 study by the CRS, Congress considered various changes to U.S. policies regarding industrial hemp during the omnibus farm bill debate. The Agricultural Act of 2014 (“farm bill,”) provides that certain research institutions and state departments of agriculture may grow industrial hemp, as part of an agricultural pilot program, if allowed under state laws where the institution or state department of agriculture is located.
In 2015, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators introduced the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015, allowing American farmers to produce and cultivate industrial hemp. The bill, now on second reading, would remove hemp from the controlled substances list as long as it contained no more than 0.3 percent THC.
House Bill 230 is sponsored by Representatives Bunky Loucks, Jim Allen, Mark Baker, Eric Barlow, Scott Clem, John Eklund, Marti Halverson, Dan Laursen, Tyler Lindholm, Robert McKim, and Charles Pelkey. The bill is sponsored in the Senate by Senators Ogden Driskill, Curt Meier and Chris Rothfuss.
