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A plan by Illinois regulators to tighten the state’s hemp regulations has been put on hold after small businesses in the industry opposed the plan. The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) and a legislative committee agreed to delay the implementation of the new regulations, which were scheduled to receive final approval on November 12.
The proposed rules have been developed by state regulators over the past two years, Capitol News Illinois reported last week. But a revised draft of the regulations released in September included new provisions that caught many small business owners off guard, such as new authority to conduct unannounced inspections of hemp businesses and the possibility of criminal charges for some violations.
Proposed Rules Threaten Hemp Businesses
Norma Fuentes, a lobbyist for the Illinois Hemp Business Association, represents the interests of small, independent and minority-owned hemp businesses at the Illinois Capitol in Springfield. She said the new hemp regulations threaten the viability of the state’s small businesses.
“It kind of fueled a second War on Drugs, disenfranchised social equity licenses and also financially burdened local businesses through some of the testing that they require,” Fuentes told Capitol News Illinois.
She noted that the new provisions authorize the IDOA to conduct random, unannounced inspections and testing of hemp business facilities. Earlier drafts of the regulations required the department to give at least five days’ notice before conducting such inspections. Other provisions of the proposal allow for administrative penalties and referral for possible criminal charges to address violations of the regulations.
“It opens the gate for overpolicing and criminalization of some of this industry, which is what we believe starts and fuels a second War on Drugs,” said Fuentes.
She explained that the proposed regulations would also prevent individuals who have been convicted of a drug-related felony in the previous 10 years would be prohibited from obtaining a hemp license or holding a management position in a licensed hemp business. She added that the state’s 2019 Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act, which legalized recreational marijuana in Illinois, prioritizes cannabis licenses for applicants who have been negatively impacted by the War on Drugs.
Agriculture Department Official Defends New Hemp Regulations
David Lakeman, IDOA’S division manager for cannabis and hemp, told the legislative Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) at a November 12 meeting that the ban on those with drug felony convictions from holding hemp businesses licenses or management positions in hemp businesses is required by federal law.
“The federal government and USDA has been extremely rigid on that section, for us and for every other state that is running its own hemp program,” said Lakeman.
Lakeman also told lawmakers that the IDOA has not changed its focus with the proposed regulations.
“To be clear, the department’s intent here is solely to align and implement the United States Department of Agriculture’s rules on hemp as implementing the 2018 Farm Bill,” he said.
The new regulations also include new “sampling” and “testing” fees of up to $1,500 per product. Ashraf Hassan, owner of hemp manufacturer Organic Pharma Techs in Joliet, Illinois, told lawmakers that the new regulations are a threat to the state’s hemp industry.
“I’ll be forced to relocate my business to a new state, taking good jobs and opportunities out of Illinois,” said Hassan, according to a report from The Center Square. “Even more concerning, this rule would disenfranchise the very same people that Illinois’ social equity program was meant to uplift.”
The IDOA has agreed to delay final approval of the rules for 45 days so the agency can conduct additional meetings on the issue and respond to inquiries from business owners and other hemp industry stakeholders. The proposed regulations will also be considered at a JCAR meeting next week.
The move to tighten hemp regulations in Illinois follows similar actions in other states including New Jersey and California, where new emergency regulations on consumable hemp products went into effect in September.
“}]] A plan by Illinois regulators to tighten the state’s hemp rules has been put on hold after small businesses in the industry opposed the plan. Read More
