Iowa Lawmakers Risk Ruining Hemp Businesses With New Bill, Business Owner Explains Why

The success of Iowa hemp businesses is at stake if lawmakers decide to support a new measure that seeks to change the rules around the products they produce.

That's according to business owners and farmers who are against House Study Bill 665, a legislation that was reviewed by lawmakers last week following its introduction.

On Wednesday, a three-member House subcommittee recommended the passage of the measure to additionally regulate hemp and hemp products, providing penalties, and making penalties applicable, reported Iowa Capital Dispatch.

It was proposed by the Department of Public Safety, seeking to allow the Department of Health and Human Services more supervision of the distribution of hemp-derived and cannabis products. Meaning, the bill would allow the agency to sanction businesses that violate state rules, including the sale of products with THC levels that exceed the state's 0.3% limit.

The sale of products in a non-accepted form, such as raw cannabis flower would also be banned under the measure. Interestingly, a separate push – House Study Bill 532, which recently advanced through the legislature – seeks to amend the state’s definition of “medical cannabidiol” in such a way as to include forms of oral, topical and inhalable marijuana, including raw cannabis flower.

House Study Bill 665 would also make illegal distribution of cannabis products to people under 21 while allowing the state to take regulatory measures against vendors of THC-infused alcoholic beverages.

Scott Booher of Four Wind Farms which produces hemp, said businesses like his would be "swept up in collateral damage," despite being law-abiding.

Why? Booher said the measure also prohibits minors from accessing hemp-derived products that don't contain THC, such as CBD products that are often used to treat various behavioral problems as well as pain in children.

"Let's look at what needs to be taken care of instead of just sweeping everybody under the rug," he said.

Cannabis In Iowa

Iowa passed its first medical marijuana bill in 2014. That law allowed the use of cannabis oil for the treatment of epilepsy only. It was expanded by the state's Medical Cannabidiol Act which was signed into law in 2017, allowing the production of products with a limited amount of THC.

In 2020, Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law changes to the cap on THC in the medical marijuana program allowing patients with more conditions to access the program.

As for recreational cannabis, it remains illegal in Iowa, despite efforts to legalize it.

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