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A national hemp industry group and businesses including the company founded by weed icons Cheech and Chong last week filed a petition to block California’s ban on hemp products with detectable amounts of THC. The petition for a temporary restraining order to block enforcement of the hemp THC ban was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court as part of lawsuit filed last month by the U.S. Hemp Roundtable and hemp consumer goods companies including Cheech and Chong’s Global Holdings.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled the emergency regulations from the California Department of Health (CDPH) last month after a hemp products regulations bill failed to gain the approval of state lawmakers earlier this summer. The regulations, which ban consumable hemp products with any detectable amount of delta-9 THC or other intoxicating cannabinoids such as delta-8 THC, went into effect on September 23. The regulations also limit consumable hemp products to five servings per package and require retailers to sell such products only to consumers aged 21 and up.
Hemp advocates immediately balked at the emergency regulations, saying they would threaten the emerging hemp industry and harm patients who use hemp cannabinoid products therapeutically. On September 24 the U.S Hemp Roundtable filed a complaint to block enforcement of the new rules, joined by co-plaintiffs Cheech and Chong’s Global Holdings, the company owned by legendary marijuana comedy duo Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong, as well as Juicetiva, Blaze Life, Boldt Runners, Lucky to be Beverage and Sunflora. On Friday, the plaintiffs filed a petition for a temporary restraining order (TRO) to block enforcement of the emergency regulations while the case is heard by the court.
“If allowed to remain in effect, the Emergency Regulations will eliminate nearly every ingestible hemp product currently for sale in California, including the vast majority of nonintoxicating products,” the petition maintains. “Many small businesses will have to close operations immediately with millions in losses. Relief is thus warranted because the Emergency Regulations are substantially unlawful and have in any event been adopted by drastically unlawful means.”
The petition notes that state regulators have failed to fully implement and enforce hemp regulatory legislation that was passed three years ago. Additionally, the legislature this summer declined to adopt a hemp regulatory bill (AB 2223) favored by Newsom.
“The Department [of Public Health] had nearly three years since 2021 to address the issues in these Emergency Regulations, which were fully known to the Department and the California Legislature,” the TRO request reads. “As recently as a few weeks ago, the California Legislature refused to pass AB 2223…which would have enacted similar provisions.”
Plaintiffs Say Regulations Will ‘Devastate’ The Hemp Industry
The court filing maintains that the ban on any detectable amount of THC will cripple the hemp industry. The regulation is at odds with 2018 federal legislation that legalized hemp and hemp products containing no more than 0.3% THC by weight. The rule prohibits many non-intoxicating products, including CBD products popular with many consumers.
“This draconian regulation alone will essentially devastate an emerging industry that consists largely of small business owners,” the petition argues. “It’s akin to requiring candy to stop containing sugar…starting tomorrow.”
Jonathan Miller, general counsel for the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, said that the plaintiffs in the case would like to see the court approve the temporary restraining and eventually make it permanent.
“We are hopeful that the Court will temporarily block – and then ultimately, permanently enjoin – Governor Newsom’s misguided efforts to devastate hemp farmers, business and product consumers in California,” Miller said in an October 4 statement from the industry group. “It’s high time that the Governor abandon this punitive effort and sit down with all stakeholders to appropriately address his stated mission: to develop a robust regulatory regime that promotes health and safety and keeps hemp products out of the hands of minors.”
“This is not just about California,” Miller told online cannabis news source Marijuana Moment. “California is the largest state in our union. It’s the fifth-largest economy in the world. It is where the birth of legal cannabis happened in this country, and so it makes this decision ever more important.”
A hearing on the TRO petition is scheduled for Thursday, according to information from the U.S. Hemp Roundtable.
“}]] Hemp advocates including the company formed by Cheech and Chong have asked a court to temporarily block enforcement of a California ban on hemp products with THC. Read More