The Connecticut House of Representatives passed a bill this week regulating ingestible hemp products, with lawmakers saying the law is necessary to protect the public from the potentially harmful effects of hemp-derived cannabinoids. The House approved Bill 5150 by a vote of 130-16 on Tuesday, less than three months after the bill was introduced in Congress by the House General Laws Committee. The bill now goes to the Connecticut State Senate for consideration.
Hemp farming and products made from hemp were legalized more than five years ago with the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill by the U.S. Congress. Since then, numerous ingestible hemp products containing addictive cannabinoids have been introduced to the market and are widely available at retail outlets such as convenience stores, gas stations, and smoke shops. Rep. Mike D’Agostino, one of the bill’s lead sponsors, said the law is needed to regulate the unregulated market for cannabis-derived cannabinoid products.
“You can’t ban it, but you can thoroughly regulate it,” said Democratic Rep. Mike D’Agostino, co-chair of the General Law Committee. According to the report from hartford coolant. “We said, ‘Okay, those products need to be manufactured to our standards.’ To be disclosed according to our standards, you must label it according to our standards. ”
law It would regulate hemp products, including THC-infused beverages, and restrict the sale of certain products to adults 21 and older. The bill also redefines and expands the definition of high-THC hemp products, which are more tightly regulated than others. Additionally, the bill establishes a new category for THC, “classifying it as an ‘infused beverage,’ and requiring manufacturers of hemp products to meet a number of requirements,” the Legislative Research Service said. Report cited by CT News addict.
Bill sets potency limits for THC
The law establishes a uniform potency limit of 1 milligram of THC per serving for hemp-derived products. Products with THC content above the limit per serving are classified as high-THC products and are sold at medical marijuana dispensaries or licensed medical marijuana dispensaries established in response to the legalization of recreational marijuana in Connecticut in 2021. It will only be available at cannabis retail stores.
The bill also defines the unregulated sale of cannabis and hemp products as a violation of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act, which would allow the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection and the Attorney General to remove unlicensed products from the market. becomes easier.
“We want to make sure that the rules are followed, that products that are unregulated, sold to minors, sold in convenience stores, and that fall outside the strict structure we have created. We need to make sure that we don’t,” D’Agostino said.
The bill “includes a provision requiring towns to go to court to shut down the doors of vape shops selling marijuana and other businesses selling illegal marijuana, and towns to You can get a portion and a fine ‘and be taxed for its execution,”’ D’Agostino said.
“If you’re in a town that has approved legal marijuana, the last thing you want is to have a vape shop next door that sells competing illegal products,” he added.
The Cannabis Product Regulation Bill also sets standards for the labeling of cannabis products and amends some rules governing cannabis cultivation by social equity licensees. D’Agostino noted that the laws and regulations governing cannabis products and sales will continue to evolve, similar to other regulated products.
“Over the decades since Prohibition ended, liquor laws have evolved over time. We are three years into this process,” D’Agostino said. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: We have come to this chamber many times to talk about cannabis law and how it evolves and how we respond to that market and make sure we continue to be there. I’ll be back.’ I’m controlling it. ”
State Rep. Dave Rutigliano of Trumbull, the ranking Republican on the General Laws Committee, was one of many Republicans who opposed marijuana legalization in Connecticut but voted in favor of the marijuana product regulation bill. It is.
“It’s already legal. You can’t make it illegal. So we decided to try to regulate it in a way that creates a safer environment for everyone,” Rutigliano said. “As with last year, our goal this year is to take THC products, and therefore intoxicating products, out of supermarkets, convenience stores and gas stations, and into places where they are regulated, taxed and controlled. ”