Latest news with #Delta-10
The Hill
24-06-2025
- Business
- The Hill
Texas's Dan Patrick vows to keep fighting against THC after Abbott vetoes ban
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) is vowing to keep fighting for a total THC ban in Texas after Gov. Greg Abbott (R) vetoed such a ban but signaled willingness to accept certain facets of one. In a statement Monday night, Abbott appeared open to a ban on 'synthetic' cannabinoids — an olive branch in the escalating war of words with Patrick. The statement from Abbott's office indicated his support for banning Delta-8, Delta-10 and other lab-created or modified variants of Delta-9 THC, the naturally-occurring psychoactive ingredient in cannabis, Patrick wrote on X. Patrick said his staff would collaborate with Abbott to 'quickly pass a bill to ban all synthetic THC' when the legislature returns for the special session Abbott has called for late July It marked a slight climb down from Patrick's blistering and often meandering press release on Monday, where he blasted Abbot's agenda as a proposal 'for us to legalize marijuana in Texas — by regulating it.' In that conference, Patrick reaffirmed his opposition to cannabis legalization, accusing the state's thousands of dispensaries of being fronts for drug cartels and terrorism. He also offered a personal criticism of Abbott, whom he accused of 'parachuting' in at the last minute to veto a law to which, Patrick said, he has offered no prior objection. The industry said this week it would welcome more regulations. The rift between the state's top Republicans broke out after Abbott's last minute decision Sunday to veto Senate Bill 3, a full ban of the state's multibillion dollar recreational cannabis industry. In his veto statement, Abbott argued that the law, which Patrick effectively held the legislative budget hostage to pass, was likely to be thrown out by federal judges as a direct challenge to federal supremacy on 'hemp.' While 'hemp' and 'marijuana' are effectively the same plant, hemp — a term of art for non-psychoactive cannabis — has been federally legal since 2018. The measure opened a gap in decades of federal cannabis policy through which a multibillion dollar grey-market industry has poured — with Texas as one of its key nodes. Hemp has become an imprtant cash crop in the five years since Texas set up its own program, and family farmers were a key constituency arguing against the ban and pressing Abbott for a veto. In the press conference, Patrick argued that virtually all Republicans in the state legislature had supported S.B. 3. But civil society group Texas Watch argued many had little choice. State Rep. Wes Virdell (R), who both voted for S.B. 3 and praised Abbott for the veto, acknowledged to The Texas Tribune the tough situation legislators were in. 'Folks are mad at me for voting for SB 3 and folks will be mad at me for supporting the veto,' Virdell told the Tribune. 'Unfortunately, politics is more than just policy and not everybody knows how the sausage gets made.' In his Monday press conference, Patrick insisted the ban was a matter of principle. 'I am not mad at the governor, but I am not going to legalize marijuana in Texas,' Patrick said. 'And if people want to vote me out of office, so be it.'
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Springfield to take action against illegal ‘Gas Station Weed'
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Springfield is cracking down on illegal 'Gas Station Weed' throughout the city. Springfield woman turns herself in for Old Navy merchandise theft in South Windsor On Wednesday, Mayor Domenic Sarno, along with other city officials, will announce a new ordinance that's aimed at illegal 'Gas Station Weed.' This type is targeting youth and putting the public's health at risk. The announcement is set to take place at 2:30 p.m. at Springfield City Hall. The State House News Service states that 'Gas Station Weed' is not the same cannabis that is sold at licensed dispensaries, and is often unregulated. They are advertised as a legal hemp product under federal law, but they offer the same kind of high as cannabis. Hemp is defined as cannabis that has no more than 0.3% Delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is the primary psychoactive compound of marijuana, by dry weight at the time of harvest. This type of hemp-based product has been around for about six years, but has become more popular recently. They are marked as things like 'Delta-8,' 'Delta-10' or 'THC In A Bottle,' and often come in bright packaging, which is sometimes meant to mimic the look of legal products. On Wednesday, a bill set to reform the Cannabis Control Commission will go before the House of Representatives after years of controversies and complaints from local business owners. The bill is now cleared through two committees and is poised to pass the House. The bill places the commission entirely under Governor Healey, which means the five-person board would go down to three appointed commissioners, with one of them a full-time chair. The bill would regulate and tax the sale of hemp-based and CBD gummies and drinks, and open the door to retail-only medical marijuana businesses. The City of Springfield states that no one should sell, cultivate, deliver, or otherwise commercially distribute marijuana products within the city without first obtaining a marijuana operating permit issued annually by the Department of Health and Human Services. Only owners of establishments with a permanent, nonmobile location in the city can apply for an operating permit at the specified location. The fee for a marijuana operating permit is $2,000 annually. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Illinois lawmakers again fail to act on hemp, while a new study highlights growing health concerns
A new report on hemp-derived THC highlights growing concerns over its safety, legality and impact on health — even as Illinois lawmakers have failed again to keep the products away from children. The report by the University of Illinois System Institute of Government and Public Affairs notes that the lack of regulation of hemp means there is no state oversight of ingredients, potency or marketing to kids. The report cites studies showing many hemp products had different amounts of THC than labeled, while some were well above the package limits for licensed cannabis products, and contained toxic solvents left over from processing. Some products also mimicked popular candy or snack packaging that could appeal to kids. Several incidents have occurred in the Chicago area of school-age children going to hospitals after ingesting hemp products. But as in previous years, state lawmakers failed to take any significant action on hemp in its latest session, which ended Saturday. Hemp is caught in a Catch-22 repeating cycle of inaction. The 2018 federal Farm Bill legalized hemp, defined as cannabis plants that have less than 0.3% by weight of Delta-9 THC, the primary component of the plant that gets users high. Although the Farm Bill allowed production of non-intoxicating hemp derivatives such as CBD, it also inadvertantly set off an explosion of intoxicating products now available across the nation at smoke shops and gas stations. Hemp processors found ways to use chemical solvents or other methods to produce variants such as Delta-8, Delta-10, and THCO, which can get users high like marijuana. And with little enforcement, many hemp products contain Delta-9 THC anyway. The federal law also set no age restriction for hemp products. While cannabis, which is the same plant but with high levels of Delta-9, remains federally illegal, it's legal for recreational use in Illinois and 23 other states. But getting a business license is extremely difficult and expensive, and regulations make it much more expensive to open and run a cannabis business than a hemp shop. As a result, hemp shops have proliferated, while many who hold cannabis business licenses have failed to get up and running. Cannabis industry leaders want to shut down their competition, saying unlicensed hemp undercuts those who went through arduous cannabis licensing. Hemp business owners say they want to be regulated instead. Proposed hemp legislation set guidelines that would have been similar to those on cannabis businesses: sales only to those 21 and over, and testing and labeling of products for potency and contaminants, but without the expensive licensing. The chief proponent of allowing hemp businesses to operate with further regulations in Springfield, Rep. La Shawn Ford, said lawmakers could not reach agreement over whether to ban or regulate hemp. But since the spring legislative session ended, Ford has had joint meetings with cannabis and hemp operators in an attempt to reach some compromise. With the lack of licensing and taxation for hemp, and continued problems for cannabis, the state is losing out on millions in potential tax revenue, Ford said. 'It's always been industry against industry, so now everyone has made a commitment to work together to regulate hemp and make some improvements to cannabis,' he said. At least 14 states have made intoxicating hemp products illegal, and numerous municipalities in Illinois have done so. Despite Gov. JB Pritzker calling last year for hemp restrictions, state lawmakers have been stuck between the two sides, unable to reach a consensus, and as a result have done nothing. Both cannabis and hemp businesses have made significant campaign contributions to legislators. Rachel Berry, president of the Illinois Hemp Growers Association, said the lack of legislation allows business to continue as usual, but again misses an opportunity for 'common-sense' regulation. 'It seems like there's been a lack of leadership amongst lawmakers to get this issue taken care of,' she said. 'This is something that the community has been asking for for years.' She also took issue with the hemp study's characterization of intoxicating hemp as a 'loophole' in the law. She noted that federal law explicitly allows for 'all derivatives, extracts, cannabinoids, isomers, acids, salts, and salts of isomers' from hemp, which opened the door to Delta-8 and other intoxicating products. From the other side of the issue, the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois argues that intoxicating hemp products are flooding the market, undercutting licensed operators, evading health and safety regulations, and generating minimal state revenue because they aren't taxed at the high rate applied to licensed cannabis. 'Hemp and cannabis come from the same plant,' association Executive Director Tiffany Chappell Ingram said. 'Both products can get users high. It's time Illinois regulate intoxicating hemp in a manner similar to cannabis.' The National Poison Center reported about 5,000 cases of Delta-8, Delta-10 or THC-O acetate accidental or abusive ingestion, representing an 89% increase from 2021 to 2022. A 2022 national survey found that 10% of Illinois youths age 12 to 17 had used a hemp product in the past year. The University of Illinois hemp study concluded that producers would likely find new ways to get around a ban on intoxicating hemp products, which could merely drive customers online. Instead, requiring limits on hemp packaging amounts, and testing hemp products for potency, accuracy in labeling, and contaminants 'could best serve the public interest.' Tomasz Gliszewski, founder of Chicago Cannabis Co., which sells hemp products, has grown to three stores on the city's North Side since 2018, said lawmakers should approve a 21 and older age limit for hemp, with a 3% sales tax. Responsible hemp store operators already restrict sales to adults, he said, and sell tested products. His stores are described as 'Your neighborhood weed shop.' The company offers joints, vapes and edibles with THC or CBD, available by online ordering and same-day home delivery via DoorDash — something state-licensed cannabis companies can't do. 'It's been rough not having clarity,' Gliszewski said. 'Instead of trying to ban this stuff, they should pass common-sense legislation.' More companies are moving into the hemp business. Even Edible Brands, the parent company that makes Edible Arrangements fruit bouquets, has entered the market, with hemp-derived THC-infused products at Meanwhile, lawmakers took no major action to help struggling state-licensed cannabis businesses and their customers. A bill that would have expanded medical marijuana to all dispensaries, lowered licensing fees and allowed curbside pickup and drive-thru windows died again in Springfield this session.
Chicago Tribune
03-06-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Illinois lawmakers again fail to act on hemp, while a new study highlights growing health concerns
A new report on hemp-derived THC highlights growing concerns over its safety, legality and impact on health — even as Illinois lawmakers have failed again to keep the products away from children. The report by the University of Illinois System Institute of Government and Public Affairs notes that the lack of regulation of hemp means there is no state oversight of ingredients, potency or marketing to kids. The report cites studies showing many hemp products had different amounts of THC than labeled, while some were well above the package limits for licensed cannabis products, and contained toxic solvents left over from processing. Some products also mimicked popular candy or snack packaging that could appeal to kids. Several incidents have occurred in the Chicago area of school-age children going to hospitals after ingesting hemp products. But as in previous years, state lawmakers failed to take any significant action on hemp in its latest session, which ended Saturday. Hemp is caught in a Catch-22 repeating cycle of inaction. The 2018 federal Farm Bill legalized hemp, defined as cannabis plants that have less than 0.3% by weight of Delta-9 THC, the primary component of the plant that gets users high. Although the Farm Bill allowed production of non-intoxicating hemp derivatives such as CBD, it also inadvertantly set off an explosion of intoxicating products now available across the nation at smoke shops and gas stations. Hemp processors found ways to use chemical solvents or other methods to produce variants such as Delta-8, Delta-10, and THCO, which can get users high like marijuana. And with little enforcement, many hemp products contain Delta-9 THC anyway. The federal law also set no age restriction for hemp products. While cannabis, which is the same plant but with high levels of Delta-9, remains federally illegal, it's legal for recreational use in Illinois and 23 other states. But getting a business license is extremely difficult and expensive, and regulations make it much more expensive to open and run a cannabis business than a hemp shop. As a result, hemp shops have proliferated, while many who hold cannabis business licenses have failed to get up and running. Cannabis industry leaders want to shut down their competition, saying unlicensed hemp undercuts those who went through arduous cannabis licensing. Hemp business owners say they want to be regulated instead. Proposed hemp legislation set guidelines that would have been similar to those on cannabis businesses: sales only to those 21 and over, and testing and labeling of products for potency and contaminants, but without the expensive licensing. The chief proponent of allowing hemp businesses to operate with further regulations in Springfield, Rep. La Shawn Ford, said lawmakers could not reach agreement over whether to ban or regulate hemp. But since the spring legislative session ended, Ford has had joint meetings with cannabis and hemp operators in an attempt to reach some compromise. With the lack of licensing and taxation for hemp, and continued problems for cannabis, the state is losing out on millions in potential tax revenue, Ford said. 'It's always been industry against industry, so now everyone has made a commitment to work together to regulate hemp and make some improvements to cannabis,' he said. At least 14 states have made intoxicating hemp products illegal, and numerous municipalities in Illinois have done so. Despite Gov. JB Pritzker calling last year for hemp restrictions, state lawmakers have been stuck between the two sides, unable to reach a consensus, and as a result have done nothing. Both cannabis and hemp businesses have made significant campaign contributions to legislators. Rachel Berry, president of the Illinois Hemp Growers Association, said the lack of legislation allows business to continue as usual, but again misses an opportunity for 'common-sense' regulation. 'It seems like there's been a lack of leadership amongst lawmakers to get this issue taken care of,' she said. 'This is something that the community has been asking for for years.' She also took issue with the hemp study's characterization of intoxicating hemp as a 'loophole' in the law. She noted that federal law explicitly allows for 'all derivatives, extracts, cannabinoids, isomers, acids, salts, and salts of isomers' from hemp, which opened the door to Delta-8 and other intoxicating products. From the other side of the issue, the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois argues that intoxicating hemp products are flooding the market, undercutting licensed operators, evading health and safety regulations, and generating minimal state revenue because they aren't taxed at the high rate applied to licensed cannabis. 'Hemp and cannabis come from the same plant,' association Executive Director Tiffany Chappell Ingram said. 'Both products can get users high. It's time Illinois regulate intoxicating hemp in a manner similar to cannabis.' The National Poison Center reported about 5,000 cases of Delta-8, Delta-10 or THC-O acetate accidental or abusive ingestion, representing an 89% increase from 2021 to 2022. A 2022 national survey found that 10% of Illinois youths age 12 to 17 had used a hemp product in the past year. The University of Illinois hemp study concluded that producers would likely find new ways to get around a ban on intoxicating hemp products, which could merely drive customers online. Instead, requiring limits on hemp packaging amounts, and testing hemp products for potency, accuracy in labeling, and contaminants 'could best serve the public interest.' Tomasz Gliszewski, founder of Chicago Cannabis Co., which sells hemp products, has grown to three stores on the city's North Side since 2018, said lawmakers should approve a 21 and older age limit for hemp, with a 3% sales tax. Responsible hemp store operators already restrict sales to adults, he said, and sell tested products. His stores are described as 'Your neighborhood weed shop.' The company offers joints, vapes and edibles with THC or CBD, available by online ordering and same-day home delivery via DoorDash — something state-licensed cannabis companies can't do. 'It's been rough not having clarity,' Gliszewski said. 'Instead of trying to ban this stuff, they should pass common-sense legislation.' More companies are moving into the hemp business. Even Edible Brands, the parent company that makes Edible Arrangements fruit bouquets, has entered the market, with hemp-derived THC-infused products at Meanwhile, lawmakers took no major action to help struggling state-licensed cannabis businesses and their customers. A bill that would have expanded medical marijuana to all dispensaries, lowered licensing fees and allowed curbside pickup and drive-thru windows died again in Springfield this session.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Florida hemp industry wins another reprieve from regulations this year
A Tallahassee hemp store. (Photo by Mitch Perry/ Florida Phoenix) A year ago, members of Florida's hemp industry were lobbying Gov. Ron DeSantis to veto a bill regulating hemp-derived THC products that many claimed if signed into law would be a devastating blow to their livelihoods. Their mission was accomplished when he did in fact veto the proposal last June. That won't be required this year; the Legislature failed to pass anything on hemp before unofficially ending the legislative session on Friday night (they are expected to return to Tallahassee later this month to deal exclusively with budget-related matters). State Sen. Colleen Burton via Florida Senate Rep. Michelle Salzman via Florida House The central problem appeared to be the substantive differences between the Senate bill sponsored by Polk County Republican Colleen Burton (SB 438) and the House version (HB 7027) sponsored by Panhandle Republican Michelle Salzman. The two measures would have capped the potency of hemp-derived THC products, placed advertising restrictions, and required hemp to be tested by a certified medical cannabis laboratory. But there were some big differences: The Senate bill (like its 2024 version) called for the outright ban of synthetic cannabinoids like Delta-8 and said that the newly popular hemp-infused drinks could only be sold through a retailer holding a liquor license. Salzman's bill in the House did not ban Delta-8. Neither did it call for retailers to have a liquor license, but it did include a 15% excise tax on all hemp purchases. Jonathan Miller, general counsel for the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, said the House bill was better for his industry than the Senate's version, and said he appreciated the work that Rep. Salzman devoted to trying to find the right balance. 'In its final form, we said that it wasn't perfect, but it was a significant improvement on the Senate bill and so in the end nothing passing was better than the Senate bill passing,' Miller said. He's 'hopeful,' he said, that between now and next year's legislative session 'people will realize that the House version is the model to start working from and hopefully produce something that really both protects farmers and consumers at the same time.' 'Honestly afraid' Carlos Hermida, who owns two hemp shops in the Tampa Bay area, says the Senate's ban on synthetic cannibinoids like Delta-8 and Delta-10 would have eliminated most hemp products from his establishments. 'I was honestly afraid that we would have to close down,' he said last week when it became evident there would be no bill this year. 'Of course it will be good for my bottom line. I can still sell drinks, I can sell the products that my customers need, and I can still advertise.' A new element in this discussion from a year ago has been the emergence of hemp-derived THC beverages being sold throughout the state. Burton's proposal would have required sales only at locations licensed to sell alcoholic beverages. Both bills limited the amount of THC in such drinks (5 milligrams per container in the Senate, 10 milligrams per container in the House), while the House bill would have banned consumption of such drinks on the retailer's premises. Those restrictions might work for establishments like ABC Fine Wine & Spirits, a major liquor retail chain, said Michael Smith, co-owner of Herban Flow in St. Petersburg. But it wouldn't work for his two stores, which feature a large selection of THC-infused drinks. 'With [Florida] being such a tourism/hospitality state, these bars are trying to develop server menus and other type of non-alcoholic menus for people to partake and join out with their friends, and the House bill would have taken away on-site consumption completely,' he said. 'Losing that ability to go out there and sell at festivals and farmers markets, that would have significantly hurt us.' During the final committee stop in the House, Rep. Salzman said she was resolute in keeping that provision in her bill, saying that there are no mechanisms to test for intoxication from those THC-infused drinks. 'This stuff has got to be regulated' With Congress largely silent on the issue, it has been up to the states to regulate hemp-derived THC products since the U.S. Farm Bill legalized hemp in 2018. While roughly half the states in the nation have placed some regulations on such products (and some, such as Idaho, have banned the product outright), Florida continues to struggle with such measures. That's a problem, says Ellen Snelling, of the Hillsborough County Anti-Drug Alliance. 'I'm extremely disappointed,' says said, noting that House Speaker Daniel Perez had convened a special workgroup that met for three days during the first week of the session to learn more about the hemp business from those in the industry. 'I thought, 'This is great. This is going to work this year,'' she recounted. Then Snelling saw the disparate House and Senate bill versions posted. 'As time went on, it just seemed like they weren't going to come to a consensus and be able to get it done. But both bills had some positive things in it, and I just wish there was some way that they have gotten together and gotten a bill passed, because it's past time, because this stuff has got to be regulated.' Florida is not the only state that failed to come up with regulations on hemp-derived THC products this year. In Georgia last month, a bill addressing concerns about high THC dosages passed in the state Senate but stalled in the House, as well. 'It's really a game of whack-a-mole,' said U.S. Hemp Roundtable's Miller. 'Over the course of legislative sessions, we've seen things pop up and we try to hammer them down, and sometimes we miss but in general I think the movement is towards robust regulation as opposed to bans. I think with this new hemp beverage industry there's a lot more excitement about that, and so I think you're going to see more Legislatures really trying to come up with solutions that provide for strong access to consumers while ensuring protection of the products.' It should be noted that both Senate and House bills passed unanimously in all of the committees in which they were heard, and the full Senate voted unanimously in support of that bill when it came to the floor last month. The House version never came to the floor of that chamber. 'We will continue to debate how hemp affects public health and our economy,' Salzman told the Phoenix in an emailed comment last week. 'There are legal gaps we need to address in the future and I look forward to working with my colleagues to ensure these products are safe and protect consumers, while still allowing Florida farmers to thrive.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
