CHICAGO (WLS) — City and state leaders remain deeply divided over how to regulate the hemp industry.
Thursday, there was a hearing at City Hall as some aldermen pushed for the city to regulate and tax hemp on its own.
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The debate over hemp products got heated at City Hall. Both sides seemed to agree that more regulation is needed, and both sides agree that the products should not be in the hands of children. However, where the products should be sold is a big sticking point that was debated vigorously.
Fury and frustration was displayed as alders and business owners laid out their views on hemp and how it should be handled in Chicago.
Alderman William Hall of the 6th Ward led the the effort, pushing for the city of Chicago to regulate and tax hemp on its own.
Banning federal legal hemp products in Chicago will not be effective in limiting access, people will just buy them online online where there are no ID checks or quality standards.
“What we don’t want is a black market where we don’t know where people are getting this stuff from, buying this stuff and hurting our kids,” Hall said. “It’s in schools. It’s on the block. It’s on the corners…and so we want to do it the right way.”
Alderman Hall, opposing Governor JB Pritzker’s push to require hemp products be exclusively sold in cannabis dispensaries, argued small business owners in Chicago, who cant afford to operate dispensaries, would be cut out of the equation.
“Hemp is legal federally,” Hall said. “What we want to do is include as many people as possible that are doing it right.”
However, critics in City Council said it’s vital all hemp products be sold at dispensaries to protect the public from dangerous intoxicating hemp products.
Alderman Gilbert Villegas of the 36th Ward said the city of Chicago doesn’t have the infrastructure to regulate hemp on its own.
“We know that in cannabis dispensaries, the product is tracked from seed to sale,” Villegas said. “That means the state of Illinois and its 12 departments have had some sort of integration with the product. If we’re going to be taxing something, we need to ensure that it’s a responsible product, it’s a process that’s been vetted properly and we aren’t putting profit over people.”
Consumers of hemp products and dispensary license holders voiced their stances on the issue.
“Banning federal legal hemp products in Chicago will not be effective in limiting access, people will just buy them online online where there are no ID checks or quality standards,” said hospice and palliative care Dr. Janice Makela.
“Our message is simple, we must treat all THC the same,” Umi Farms CEo Akele Parnell said. “To the hemp industry, you can’t have it both ways. You can’t tell consumers, this is the same thing they sell in regulated dispensaries, but tell lawmakers, actually this is different. If it gets you high, it should be regulated by the state.”
Alderman Hall said this isn’t about hurting the dispensaries, but enhancing equity in the marketplace.
“Cannabis is wrong in the way it has been regulated, cutting out those who cannot afford to be a part of it. We want to make up for loss time,” Hall said. “The bill the governor supported doesn’t include community, it doesn’t include small businesses. His bill is what we’ve seen before over the years: big people get the opportunities and little people get cut out. We want to make a positive chance in Chicago.”
As for the next steps, the finance committee is expected to review public comments from Thursday’s hearing, and make revisions to the hemp ordinance in the coming days.
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