Illinois lawmakers again failed to take action to keep dangerous hemp products out of the hands of children, prompting a call from Gov. J.B. Pritzker to regulate the industry.had bipartisan support and easily passed the Senate, but stalled in the House of Representatives at the end of the legislative session Wednesday. Divisions among factions of the cannabis business community again torpedoed the bill.
Hemp, defined as cannabis with less than 0.3% delta-9 THC, the component that gets users high, is legal under federal law. But producers have found ways to chemically derive intoxicating byproducts such as delta-8 and delta-9 THC that are sold in vape shops and gas stations. As a result, in some cases, adolescents have ended up being hospitalized for overdoses.
“It feels good to still be alive,” said Charles Wu, owner of Chi’Tiva, a hemp grower and retailer. “But the problems have not been solved. We want regulations for 21-plus and packaging and labeling standards, but there’s never been a compromise.”would have allowed all dispensaries to sell to medical patients without imposing a retail tax. Instead, medical patients will remain restricted to getting the discount at only the 55 original medical dispensaries in the state.
The Cannabis Business Association of Illinois, which represents many large companies, supported both a hemp crackdown and the expansion of medical cannabis. The Cannabis Equity Coalition of Illinois blamed large Chicago-based cannabis company Green Thumb Industries for lobbying to oppose medical dispensary expansion.