Hemp Businesses Sue Arkansas Over Ban On THC-Infused Products

A lawsuit filed in Arkansas federal court by a coalition of hemp product marketers in Colorado, Texas and the Bear State is challenging a measure that effectively banned the sale of products infused with THC derived from hemp plants, reported the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

The products containing less than 0.3% dry weight Delta 9 were previously deemed legal under the 2018 Farm Bill, which further complicates the case brought by four hemp-related businesses.

Act 629, which Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed into law in April, prohibits the sale of products containing Delta 8, Delta 9 and Delta 10 THC in Arkansas.

Gov. Huckabee Sanders, AG Tim Griffin, Dept. of Finance and Administration, Tobacco Control Board, Dept. Agriculture, State Plant Board, as well as the prosecuting attorneys of the state's 28 judicial circuits are all named as defendants in the lawsuit.

The hemp businesses behind the legal action, including both local growers and retailers, are Bio Gen, LLC of Fayetteville; Drippers Vape Shop, LLC of Greenbrier; The Cigarette Store LLC of Colorado, doing business as Smoker Friendly and Sky Marketing Corporation of Texas, which is doing business as Hometown Hero.

Cannabis In Arkansas

On the cannabis side, Arkansas using it for medical purposes, spend millions on new products. Earlier this year, the state surpassed $100 million in tax revenue from medical marijuana sales.

Meanwhile, lawmakers are working on tightening the medical cannabis program by amending the existing law. A recently approved measure in Arkansas that gave medical cannabis patients the right to have concealed carry permits for firearms took effect this week.

The bill amended the law concerning concealed handguns while protecting the "rights of medical marijuana patients and caregivers to obtain a license to carry a concealed handgun."

However, on the recreational marijuana side, not much has happened over the past year. The state voters defeated a ballot measure that would have made the state the first in the Deep South to legalize recreational marijuana last fall.

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Photo: Courtesy of succo, mrkukuruznik5 by Pixabay