North Carolina lawmakers are creating regulations for hemp-derived consumables

On June 12, the North Carolina House Judiciary Committee discussed House Bill 563, which would implement a new law prohibiting the sale of cannabis-derived consumer goods to anyone under the age of 17 (unless a parent or guardian consents).

One of the bill’s main sponsors, Republican Jeff McNeely, told the committee how much progress has been made on the bill since it was first introduced. “When I started naively, I thought I just wanted to make sure a 10-year-old kid couldn’t walk into a tobacco store and buy some of these products,” McNeely said. Currently, the bill is 17 pages long and contains numerous provisions regulating cannabis-derived products for youth. “Research suggests that approximately three-quarters of our youth are introduced to marijuana through the types of products found in smoke shops and convenience stores,” he added.

According to NC Message Line, if passed, the bill would require both manufacturers and distributors to apply for a state license to begin selling by July 1. Laboratory tests would also be required under the bill. More restrictions would mean banning food items shaped like animals or cartoon characters. It would also require manufacturers to create child-resistant packaging and include information on ingredients and allergens. Additionally, a warning label would be required informing the consumer that they should not drive or operate heavy machinery when consuming it.

Elizabeth Robinson, senior director of the North Carolina Retail Merchants Association, expressed support on behalf of her association. “We appreciate the framework that allows legitimate businesses to continue to operate responsibly while also regulating these bad actors who, as he said, unfortunately, some of these products end up in the hands of our youth,” Robinson said.

The bill was also recently amended on June 12 to require both public and charter schools to develop policies prohibiting the presence of tobacco products and cannabis-derived materials on school campuses or at any related events.

This bill was created in part due to the increase in young people accessing psychoactive cannabis consumables. In December 2023, seven middle school students were hospitalized after eating Krispy meals with rice. Two other students were arrested for supplying THC-laced edibles along with psilocybin mushrooms, which was later confirmed by a group of children to be a “planned” act.

McNeely answered questions during a recent hearing from other representatives such as Rep. Marcia Morey. “Are the penalties consistent with those for small amounts of marijuana?” – Morey asked.

“No, ma’am, they really aren’t,” McNeely replied. “I look at this product as a non-alcoholic beer. If it’s done right, there’s really nothing criminal or wrong about it. The problem comes when something hasn’t been done right.

McNeely urges the North Carolina Department of Agriculture to take responsibility for proper testing. “The Ag Department says they don’t have the skills, time and people to deal with this,” McNeely said. “So the only way I knew of to get this case worked out for less was to put the heavy-handed enforcement on the other side and hope that the players in the game would follow the rules and fix anything that wasn’t working right.”

Rep. David Willis also asked McNeely about how the testing process works and who will pay for it. Currently, a cannabis product manufacturer tests products before distributing them. North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement (ALE) is then responsible for this issue.

McNeely added that the bill would provide ALE with $500,000 to cover testing costs. Willis also asked if there was a way for the cannabis industry to pay for this instead of taxpayers, which McNeely confirmed is a promising outcome. “We hope that the industry will be able to fund these agents and sample collection, all once the bill goes into effect,” McNeely explained. – But to get it going, we had to have some start-up money.

Starting in January 2025, ALE will publish its first annual report to the General Assembly, which will include “enforcement activities,” according to NC Message Line.

If passed, HB-563 would take effect in July 2024. “I understand there are some things in the works. We’re not asking anyone to just rip everything off the shelf,” McNeely said. “We give them time to do it.” The bill will then be considered by the House Appropriations Committee.

As North Carolina lawmakers work to protect children from cannabis products, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) recently opened the state’s first medical marijuana dispensary in April. Otherwise, medical marijuana is not currently legalized in North Carolina, but EBCI now allows medical marijuana cardholders to purchase medical marijuana on tribal lands.