The Legal Status of CBD post Midterms
In recent months, cannabidiol, or CBD (the non-psychotropic chemical compound that occurs naturally in cannabis) has become increasingly popular in the US. CBD has been turning up in bath bombs, lattes, muscle rubs, oil extracts, dog treats, and a multitude of other products, to create a market that the Hemp Business Journal reports was worth $190 million in 2017. It’s so mainstream that the New York Times’ style section wrote about it last month.
While there is little to no doubt that CBD’s social status is high, its legal status can be a bit confusing for folks. So here is what to know after the Midterm Elections.
Marijuana is still Federally outlawed
Regardless of how states voted, marijuana is still federally outlawed as a Schedule I substance. Effective in January 2017, the DEA ruled that marijuana scheduling includes “marihuana extract” (the agency typically refers to marijuana either by the plant’s scientific name, Cannabis sativa, or the Reefer Madness – era spelling “marihuana”). In the rule, the agency defined “marihuana extract” as an “extract containing one ore more cannabinoids that has been derived from any plant of the genus Cannabis” – which would include CBD.
How is Hemp different from Marijuana?
Marijuana and Hemp are essentially two versions of the same species of plant from the genus Cannabis, bred to have small genetic variations. Marijuana is typically grown to have high amounts of THC. Hemp, on the other hand, is bred specifically to have, at most, trace amounts of THC – certainly not enough to cause a psychoactive effect.
Is Hemp derived CBD still Legal?
According to the 2014 Farm Bill, a set of federal laws concerning US food and agriculture, legal “industrial hemp” refers to plants and products derived from cannabis plants with less than 0.3% THC, grown by a state-licensed farmer. There’s nothing in the bill about CBD, and the hemp industry makes many of the CBD products now widely available.
The commonly held belief is that if you’re consuming products made from hemp grown by a state-licensed grower, that contains less than 0.3% THC, you’re in good shape. If you live in a city like New York, and have noticed coffee shops selling CBD lattes, there’s a good chance they fall into this category.
“We’re in this stage where we have non-enforcement at the federal level, non-enforcement at the state level,” says Cristina Buccola, a New York based attorney who advises cannabis-related businesses. “For all intents and purposes, it is a legal substance.”
Hemp post-Midterms
Hemp derived CBD has a somewhat unlikely champion in Republican Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell. The staunch Kentucky conservative introduced a bill in April that would establish hemp as an agricultural commodity and clearly remove it- along with any doubt about hemp-derived CBD from the DEA’s definition of marijuana. The Hemp Farming Act is included in the Senate version of the 2018 Farm Bill, but not the House version. Next, committee members from the House and Senate will have to compromise on a version of the Farm Bill. Industry insiders are optimistic that the Hemp Farming Act will be included and could even pass as early as this year.
