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A United States District Court for the District of New Jersey Judge has decided to permit a regulated intoxicating hemp NJ market with products from other states and no sales to minors.
According to an opinion on the NJ intoxicating hemp lawsuit obtained by the NJ Monitor, New Jersey District Court Judge Zahid N Quraishi would leave intact the ability to bring in hemp products from other states.
In addition, the judge is allowing the ban on those 21 and under from buying intoxicating hemp.
Smoke shops and other stores were supposed to stop selling intoxicating hemp by this weekend.
Judge Quraishi is allowing some of the law to stay in place. He said more laws can be written since “The New Jersey Legislature can continue to otherwise regulate the production of hemp as stringently as it would like so long is it does not prohibit the transportation or shipment of hemp or hemp products.”
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy (D) had signed the intoxicating hemp regulation bill into law. But then a hemp industry lawsuit was filed to prevent it from going into effect. The legislature passed the intoxicating hemp regulation bill this past June 2024. It went through the process fairly quickly over spring after a similar New Jersey hemp regulation bill failed last year.
The State of New Jersey has been actively defending the intoxicating hemp law in court.
The hemp industry in New Jersey has been thriving for some time. Intoxicating hemp products with Delta 8-THC and other cannabinoids are sold in convenience stores, gas stations, and bodegas, as well as head shops and smoke shops. They get you high like state-legal cannabis and underground legacy “marijuana” as defined by the State.
Quraishi was very critical of the exclusion in the hemp market of products from other states. He cited several legal opinions that were against the law.
Quraishi wrote that the “The NJHAA (New Jersey Hemp Act Amendments) not only economically discriminates against out-of-state companies and consumers, but effectively criminalizes the possession, shipment, and transportation of out-of-state intoxicating hemp products by manufacturers, producers, and consumers, while simultaneously allowing intoxicating hemp products from New Jersey to survive. This protectionism does not survive heightened scrutiny.”
So now hemp shops, smoke shops, and liquor stores can sell intoxicating products.
Also, liquor stores can still sell the intoxicating hemp drinks that they do. These drinks with names like “Cann” were recently mentioned in a New York Times story on legal cannabis.
The judge agreed with the companies that filed the lawsuit and their argument on the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. He wanted products to come to New Jersey stores without the State enforcing “Protectionist” laws.
This is very difficult because many New Jersey cannabis advocates promote local ownership. They also see minority and/or female and veteran entrepreneurs as the ideal owners of legal cannabis companies. Many are also eager to see those who suffered from the War on Drugs and are Social Equity license candidates succeed.
In addition, the UFCW labor union Local 360 of South Jersey has been successful in promoting that those working in the legal cannabis industry should be well compensated and be able to join a union.
This is difficult since we live in an era of a global marketplace. Some companies tell Heady NJ they are trying to import cannabis from South America one day.
Judge Quraishi thought the safety regulations and standards were appropriate. He wrote that “it is therefore appropriate for the Legislature to act to protect its citizens from products whose total THC content exceeds what the Legislature deems safe.
However, the Legislature may not blatantly discriminate against out-of-state economic interests.”
He added that “to the extent that Defendants profess concerns that out-of-state products might avoid the controls imposed by state production and licensure standards, the state may impose reasonable quality and purity standards for products sold in state.”
The lawsuit was filed by Loki Brands LLC; North Fork Distribution, Inc. d/b/a Cycling Frog; Cantrip, Inc.; Alpha Omega Collectis LLC d/b/a/ Apollo Sciences; Alternative Health Distribution LLC d/b/a CannaAid; and M&A LL Holdings LLC d/b/a Legal Leaf New Jersey (collectively, “Plaintiffs”) Motion for Summary Judgment (the “Motion,” ECF No. 6.)1
They sued NJ Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin, NJCRC Chair Dianna Houenou, and NJ Secretary of Agriculture Edward D. Wengryn in their official capacities.
“There is nothing more important than protecting the health and safety of New Jersey’s children. While I am pleased that the court order upheld the ban on selling intoxicating hemp products to minors, we must recognize that, without comprehensive regulation, these substances will continue to present a significant threat to the health and well-being of our communities.,” said Senator Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex/Hudson).
She sponsored and championed the bill through the legislative process.
“Other states have been successful in this pursuit, and New Jersey should be no different. We are committed to working with the Administration and the Assembly to clarify any technical details that are necessary,” Ruiz added.
The legal cannabis markets have evolved on a strict state basis. Thus, legal cannabis companies must grow, make, and sell cannabis products only in New Jersey.
Many independent cannabis business owners and large corporations that are Multi-State Operators (MSOs) do not like the intoxicating hemp industry.
This is exemplified by the efforts of the New Jersey CannaBusiness Association and NJ Cannabis Trade Association for the bill.
Many underground legacy operators and consumer advocates felt the same way,
Some consumer advocates say it is a very synthetic industrial practice to make the weed get you high.
They all believe the quality of intoxicating hemp is not good in general.
Some business owners in the adult-use cannabis industry also don’t like that hemp vendors could be taking their customers.
Nonetheless, there are some good hemp manufacturers and sellers throughout New Jersey. Their business would have been very hurt by the law.
Many New Jersey smoke shop owners operate quality establishments. They sell products where you can scan a QR code with your phone and find a lot of the details you’d want about it in the Certificate Of Authenticity (COA) online.
Some quality smoke shop owners went legitimate after being underground legacy operator roots. They are well-versed in all the details of their product that a consumer would like to know. Many are eager to sell a product they believe helps people.
However, so many gas station and convenience store owners sell bad products that there has been a severe backlash.
The bill mandated that the NJ Cannabis Regulatory Commission (NJCRC) regulate intoxicating hemp sold in smoke shops. However, they were not given more resources to do so. Mandating the NJCRC to regulate intoxicating hemp is difficult. They were not given more money or resources to do so.
At their last meeting, NJCRC Chair Dianna Houenou said at their September 2024 meeting they were discussing it with other state agencies, as directed by the bill.
The very next day, there was news that Commissioner Charles Barker, the most outspoken of the 5 in favor of an equitable industry infused with social justice, was replaced by Amelia Mapp. But no hints were given that Barket or the other knew it would be his last meeting.
With so many business owners vocally unhappy at the slow pace of the NJCRC, giving them more to do is difficult.
Hemp was legalized in the 2018 Farm Bill passed by the United States Congress and signed into law by former President Donald Trump. It allowed the industrial use of hemp to make rope, textiles, and other products that would not get you high.
It kept federal marijuana prohibition intact and outlawed hemp with more than a very small amount of Delta-9 THC, which is the cannabinoid that gets you high.
So enterprising scientists explored the plant and found many cannabinoids like Delta-8 THC, Delta-10 THC, and THCA, to name a few, did get you high. Then many companies have been selling products with significant amounts of those across the country.
Because it’s federally legal, they do not face all the same obstacles that exist in the state-legal cannabis markets.
However, many other states have also heavily regulated or banned hemp products.
The most prominent hemp products are heavy in the Delta-8 THC cannabinoid. Many others do indeed get you high.
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