Due to a lack of regulations in Ohio, the hemp-intoxicating industry was able confuse Ohio’s consumers and the law enforcement.
By Megan Henry, Ohio Capital Journal
A pair of Ohio Republican state senators want intoxicating hemp products to be sold only at adult-use dispensaries—not convenience stores, smoke shops or gas stations.
Ohio state Sens. Steve Huffman, R-Tipp city and Shane Wilkin, R-Hillsboro introduced Senate Bill 86. This bill would also impose a 15% tax on hemp intoxicants sold in dispensaries as well as ban sales of these products to those under the age of 21.
Wilkin, Wilkin’s sponsor, said that intoxicating products made from hemp are psychoactive, but unregulated products. They can be as, or even more, intoxicating than marijuana.
In the U.S. Farm Bill 2018, hemp that contains less than 0.3 % THC can be legally grown.
According to a study by the Ohio State University Drug Enforcement and Policy Center from November 2024, Ohio is among about 20 states without any regulation on intoxicating hemp-based products. 15 states have banned these products. According to a study, seven states including Michigan regulate the product like cannabis while seven others regulate it as consumer goods.
“Given the lack of regulations, the intoxicating hemp industry has been able to confuse Ohio consumers and law enforcement by marketing themselves as ‘dispensaries’ with ‘recreational marijuana,'” Huffman said in his testimony.
According to the bill, hemp intoxicants would be available only at dispensaries that met the standards of packaging, labeling, and advertising. Only products that are able to be consumed or inhaled would fall under the bill.
Huffman testified that, “To suppress illicit markets, this bill prevents hemp products, which aren’t sold at dispensaries, from being marketed as marijuana. It also prohibits the use of any term associated with product sales that might lead consumers to assume that the product they purchase is marijuana, or that it is coming from a dispensary,” he said.
The bill he introduced in the past General Assembly would have forbidden the sale all hemp-based intoxicants, but the proposal failed to pass out of committee. Hemp entrepreneurs testified in opposition to the bill, as it could end their livelihood. However, they were for regulations.
SB 86 also regulates drinkable products containing cannabinoids.
Huffman testified that the bill authorizes manufacturers to sell low-dose cannabinoid drinks in Ohio dispensaries and craft breweries as well as bars, restaurants and take-outs. It also imposes an excise duty of $3.50 for each gallon on them, which is similar to our alcohol tax.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, (R), has asked legislators to ban or regulate delta-8 THC and Wilkin expressed his gratitude to DeWine.
Wilkin stated that “the administration has consistently warned of the dangers associated with this unregulated market. It is untested and untested. We are grateful for this effort.”
Ohio Capital Journal was the first to publish this article.
A government-funded study shows that coating dentures with CBD can help prevent oral infections.