Thank you for your interest in TOML. I am more than happy to speak with you over the phone to answer any further questions and discuss the industrialized hemp industry.
The Cannabidiol industry is being created on a day in, day out basis with different rules and regulations set by each state. The only regulations standards are recognized Federal standard at this time is identified in the 2018 Farm Bill that allows for the growth of hemp products with .3% and below of THC.
You will notice all of these have to do with cultivation, growth and production of cannabis plants, but nothing to do with the retail applications of Cannabidiol (CBD) products. Currently, all retail establishments can provide CBD products to their customers.
3 key things to remember about the Farm Bill are:
First, as noted above, hemp cannot contain more than 0.3 percent THC, per section 10113 of the Farm Bill. Any cannabis plant that contains more than 0.3 percent THC would be considered non-hemp cannabis—or marijuana—under federal law and would thus face no legal protection under this new legislation.
Second, there will be significant, shared state-federal regulatory power over hemp cultivation and production. Under section 10113 of the Farm Bill, state departments of agriculture must consult with the state’s governor and chief law enforcement officer to devise a plan that must be submitted to the Secretary of USDA. A state’s plan to license and regulate hemp can only commence once the Secretary of USDA approves that state’s plan. In states opting not to devise a hemp regulatory program, USDA will construct a regulatory program under which hemp cultivators in those states must apply for licenses and comply with a federally-run program. This system of shared regulatory programming is similar to options states had in other policy areas such as health insurance marketplaces under ACA, or workplace safety plans under OSHA—both of which had federally-run systems for states opting not to set up their own systems.
Third, the law outlines actions that are considered violations of federal hemp law (including such activities as cultivating without a license or producing cannabis with more than 0.3 percent THC). The law details possible punishments for such violations, pathways for violators to become compliant, and even which activities qualify as felonies under the law, such as repeated offenses.