Proposed Redefinition Of High-THC Hemp Products In Connecticut Faces Backlash From Small CBD Operators

Connecticut’s General Law Committee proposed a new bill to regulate the cannabis and hemp industries. The Bill, No. 5150, "An Act Concerning Cannabis And Hemp Regulation," would redefine high-THC hemp products, prohibit certain marijuana product advertising and promotion, and allow some hemp farmers to enter the marketplace. 

The legislation would amend current state law that allows for the sale of THC-infused products, like seltzers anywhere in the state if they contain less than 5mg of THC per package or 1mg per serving, to .5 milligrams per package. The idea behind these changes is to make sure all marijuana products are sold via licensed dispensaries, said Rep. David Rutigliano (R) as reported by CT Insider. However, various legal hemp businesses in the state are arguing this requirement would put them out of work.

"I am a Connecticut CBD shop that has been negatively affected through the recent legislation regarding a very terrible and overly negligent current definition of High THC Hemp Product," wrote Kenneth Bastian of CT Hemp Shop in a prepared testimony for the bill's hearing. "It has rendered 97% of my products to be classified as marijuana! This is not only against federal law it is an attack directly on the hundreds of small business owners who have been selling these CBD products since 2018." 

"The term ‘High-THC Hemp Product’ should explicitly exclude products with a CBD to THC ratio exceeding 10:1, deeming them non-psychoactive and allowing up to 0.3% total THC concentration by weight," Bastian wrote in another note.

Furthermore, the current version of the bill would prohibit marijuana retailers from engaging in "advertising or marketing that includes a discounted price or other promotional offering as an inducement to purchase cannabis or any cannabis product."

The idea behind halting promotions and discounts is to enable cannabis to be regulated like alcohol. 

"We thought that commercialization of marijuana was supposed to be sort of a social justice kind of thing, to decriminalize it, not to promote it," said Rutigliano. "These guys are putting these coupons in the Pennysaver."

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