National Hemp product ban included in shutdown ending legislation

HOUSTON - The same legislative measure which would re-open the U.S. Government carries a provision which would outlaw nearly all intoxicating hemp products currently on the market.

The backstory:

The provision, added to the spending bill in the Senate, bans any hemp product with more than .4 percent THC, a limitation the industry says will eliminate 95% of the products currently on the market and shut down thousands of businesses.

Having survived a concerted effort earlier this year to ban THC in Texas, the Hemp industry says the proposed nationwide prohibition will "backfire" and push consumers into the unregulated "black market."

What they're saying:

"If we see this policy go into effect nationwide, we are going to see a ripple effect. We are going to see not only many businesses shuttering, but a ripple effect in the economy, the commercial real estate impact of having these businesses close down, and the mass incarceration that will come when our state and local law enforcement have to turn from real crime to arresting people for the possession of hemp products," said Heather Fazio with the Texas Cannibis Policy Center.

As FOX 26 has reported, THC critics say the chemical has already done significant damage to millions of Americans and cannot be successfully regulated.

If approved, the measure would not take effect for a full year allowing Hemp advocates time to mount a persuasion campaign on Congress in a bid to salvage the multi-billion dollar industry.