Representatives of a hemp advocacy group met with members of Congress including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell last week to rally support for legislation drafted to promote hemp agriculture. The day of meetings with senators and members of the House of Representatives was coordinated by the U.S. Hemp Roundtable to advocate for Food and Drug Administration regulation of cannabidiol (CBD) and to support pending legislation including provisions of the Hemp Advancement Act and the SAFE Banking Act.
The U.S. Hemp Roundtable is a national group advocating for the hemp industry consisting of dozens of companies and organizations committed to safe hemp and CBD products. The group’s board of directors and staff traveled to the nation’s capital on April 6 to meet personally with several members of Congress to advocate for several pieces of legislation related to hemp agriculture, which was legalized by the 2018 Farm Bill.
Topping the list of engagements with lawmakers was a meeting between hemp advocates and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who supported including hemp legalization provisions in the Farm Bill. Jonathan Miller, general counsel to the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, says that the meeting with McConnell was scheduled to ensure that the FDA provides a regulatory pathway for hemp products such as CBD.
“We discussed the continuing challenges faced by the hemp and CBD industries, and the growing frustration with the FDA’s lack of movement on its 2018 promise to develop a regulatory pathway for the sale of ingestible CBD products,” Miller writes in an email.
“In addition to trying to secure passage of HR 841, HR 6134 and S 1698 – three bills that would require that the FDA regulate hemp extracts such as CBD – we discussed the option of inserting language in a must-pass bill that requires FDA to issue a formal policy of enforcement discretion while it develops its regulatory regime.”
The delegation also visited with Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine to discuss her bill, the Hemp Advancement Act of 2022 (H.R. 6645), which would improve the 2018 Farm Bill’s hemp provisions and provide greater clarity and flexibility to hemp growers and processors. The measure also includes provisions designed to protect consumers from unsafe products.
A meeting was also held with Democratic Sen. John Hickenlooper of Colorado and his Republican colleague Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky to encourage greater support for S. 1698, which would regulate CBD as a dietary supplement and food or beverage additive. Another meeting with Democratic Rep. Kurt Schrader of Oregon focused on his efforts to pass H.R. 841, which would regulate CBD as a dietary supplement, and the push to hold a hearing in the Energy and Commerce committee on hemp and CBD.
Lobbying Effort Included Support For The SAFE Banking Act
The U.S. Hemp Roundtable lobbying effort also included a visit to Republican Rep. Andy Barr of Kentucky, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, to discuss efforts to pass the SAFE Banking Act (H.R. 1996). The legislation would allow banks to provide financial services to regulated cannabis companies in states with legal marijuana. Alyssa Erickson, U.S. Hemp Roundtable public affairs and marketing coordinator, explains that the bill would also benefit hemp businesses.
“Although the 2018 Farm Bill…
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