{"id":75852,"date":"2024-06-02T09:58:23","date_gmt":"2024-06-02T17:58:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/06\/02\/louisiana-lawmakers-reject-proposed-ban-on-intoxicating-hemp-products-while-approving-some-restrictions\/"},"modified":"2024-06-02T12:45:34","modified_gmt":"2024-06-02T20:45:34","slug":"louisiana-lawmakers-reject-proposed-ban-on-intoxicating-hemp-products-while-approving-some-restrictions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/06\/02\/louisiana-lawmakers-reject-proposed-ban-on-intoxicating-hemp-products-while-approving-some-restrictions\/","title":{"rendered":"Louisiana Lawmakers Reject Proposed Ban On Intoxicating Hemp Products While Approving Some Restrictions"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cI know there are a lot of you in this room who smoke weed\u2026 If you don\u2019t vote against this, I think you\u2019re being a huge hypocrite.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>By Greg LaRose and Wesley Muller, Louisiana Illuminator<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A proposal to do away with edible hemp products in Louisiana has fizzled in the Legislature, sparing an industry that has blossomed since bungled legislation legalized it two years ago.<\/p>\n<p>On the House floor Friday, members attempted to find a happy medium on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/legis.la.gov\/legis\/BillInfo.aspx?i=246397\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Senate Bill 237<\/a>\u00a0by Sen. Thomas Pressly, R-Shreveport, which would have led to the demise of some 2,000 hemp-related businesses that have taken root in Louisiana since 2022.<\/p>\n<p>Rep. Laurie Schlegel, R-Metairie, offered compromise amendments to the Pressly bill that would have required all intoxicating ingredients be taken out of hemp products. Prevailing arguments were made in support of jobs and companies the hemp industry has spawned in Louisiana.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know there are a lot of you in this room who smoke weed, who ingest weed,\u201d Rep. Mandie Landry, D-New Orleans, said in opposition to Schegel\u2019s amendments. \u201cIf you don\u2019t vote against this, I think you\u2019re being a huge hypocrite.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The amendments failed, 39-60, and Pressly\u2019s bill foundered without being brought up for a House vote.<\/p>\n<p>Later Friday on the Senate side, members approved\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/legis.la.gov\/legis\/BillInfo.aspx?i=247174\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">House Bill 952<\/a>\u00a0by Rep. Dustin Miller, D-Opelousas, which would place several restrictions on the types of consumable products that can contain hemp and the amount per serving of THC, the same psychoactive compound found in marijuana that gets users high.<\/p>\n<p>Intoxicating hemp-infused beverages would no longer be served at bars and restaurants, and hemp gummies and other snacks would be limited to 5 mg of THC per serving size, down from 8 mg.<\/p>\n<p>Hemp products have become readily available in Louisiana, but Senate amendments to Miller\u2019s bill would prohibit their sale at convenience stores and gas stations. They would still be available at truck stops, however.<\/p>\n<p>The Senate approved the updated bill in a 37-1 vote. The House still needs to OK senators\u2019 changes to Miller\u2019s proposal, but Pressly doesn\u2019t intend to revive his bill before the legislative session ends at 6 p.m. Monday.<\/p>\n<p>Calls for stricter regulation of hemp products came from the medical marijuana and alcoholic beverage sectors, which view the fledgling field as a competitor.<\/p>\n<p>State lawmakers unwittingly\u00a0approved a bill in 2022\u00a0to allow the manufacturing and sale of hemp-derived products. The author of the bill, then-House Speaker Clay Schexnayder, R-French Settlement, had incorrectly assured legislators there wouldn\u2019t be enough THC in hemp gummies, drinks and other edibles to get anyone high.<\/p>\n<p>Gaps in the legislation permitted makers of hemp edibles to cram multiple servings into their products in order to pack more of a THC punch inside each container or package.<\/p>\n<p>The hemp industry has also put its scientific expertise to use to make its products more desirable. Manufacturers have found a way to convert cannabidiol (CBD), a separate chemical found in hemp that doesn\u2019t produce a high, into a THC extract using simple chemistry. They then concentrate it into drinks, gummies and other edibles.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lailluminator.com\/2024\/06\/01\/hemp-louisiana\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>This story was first published by Louisiana Illuminator.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"9MfTIDnKc4\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/new-jersey-governor-says-hes-honored-to-have-marijuana-strain-named-after-him-during-tour-of-grow-facility\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">New Jersey Governor Says He\u2019s \u2018Honored\u2019 To Have Marijuana Strain Named After Him During Tour Of Grow Facility<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p \/>\n<p><em>Photo courtesy of Brendan Cleak.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/louisiana-lawmakers-reject-proposed-ban-on-intoxicating-hemp-products-while-approving-some-restrictions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Louisiana Lawmakers Reject Proposed Ban On Intoxicating Hemp Products While Approving Some Restrictions<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&#013;<br \/>\n&#013;<br \/>\nRead More: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/louisiana-lawmakers-reject-proposed-ban-on-intoxicating-hemp-products-while-approving-some-restrictions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Louisiana Lawmakers Reject Proposed Ban On Intoxicating Hemp Products While Approving Some Restrictions<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cI know there are a lot of you in this room who smoke weed\u2026 If you don\u2019t vote against this, I think you\u2019re being a huge hypocrite.\u201d By Greg LaRose and Wesley Muller, Louisiana Illuminator A proposal to do away with edible hemp products in Louisiana has fizzled in the<span class=\"more-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/06\/02\/louisiana-lawmakers-reject-proposed-ban-on-intoxicating-hemp-products-while-approving-some-restrictions\/\">Continue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":457,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75852"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/457"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75852"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75852\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":75853,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75852\/revisions\/75853"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}