Latest news with #S.B.86
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ohio Senate votes to confine intoxicating hemp to dispensaries, make sales 21+
May 3—A bill banning intoxicating hemp products from being sold in gas stations, convenience stores or anywhere else outside of a licensed dispensary passed the Ohio Senate 33-0 this week. The bill, Senate Bill 86, now heads to the Ohio House for further consideration. It's the latest in a growing line of otherwise stalled attempts to regulate intoxicating hemp in Ohio. The bill targets "intoxicating hemp products," defined as any product with more than two milligrams of delta-9 THC (the psychoactive cannabinoid in marijuana) or more than 0.5 milligrams of any other "non-delta-9 THC" (like delta-8 or THCA, which can also make users feel high) per package. Under current law, those products — derived from hemp and protected under the federal Farm Bill — can be sold just about anywhere in the state and to anyone at the seller's discretion. Such products are often sold in gas stations, convenience stores or CBD stores, and have frequently been targeted by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and other opponents for their potential appeal to children through colorful packaging and subliminal branding. Under S.B. 86, those products could only be sold by licensed cannabis dispensaries, with a 10% tax that matches the tax Ohio currently has on recreational marijuana. "This bill simply closes loopholes that allows these dangerous products to be sold to our children," said state Sen. Steve Huffman, R-Tipp City, who jointly sponsors the bill. Robert McClure, a veteran and owner of a boutique "SunMed — Your CBD Store" in Centerville, told this news outlet that it's frustrating for his business — which doesn't sell to customers under 21 and focuses on wellness — to be lumped in with more problematic retailers. McClure told the Senate General Government Committee last month that S.B. 86 would make it illegal for him to carry most of his best-selling products and would put him "and many others who are doing it right out of business." In an interview with this outlet, McClure specifically noted that he would no longer be able to sell his "bread and butter:" tinctures of full spectrum CBD oil sold in monthslong supply. His two-month, 3,000 milligram oil tinctures, for example, contain 75 milligrams of THC — far above the bounds of what S.B. 86 allows to be sold outside dispensaries. McClure said CBD, which is non-intoxicating, trumps the THC contents in those tinctures by as much as 50-to-1. When this outlet talked with Senate leaders on both sides of the aisle, they downplayed McClure's concern about S.B. 86 putting him out of business. "I still think if they were operating before they'll be able to operate after," said Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon. "What I will say is that there are legitimate products that they can be selling to make money that will not put our children in jeopardy, and that's where I'll leave that," said Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood. McClure doubled down on the threat S.B. 86 poses to his business and maintained that shops like his, offering products like his, are an essential part of Ohio's wellness ecosystem and offer a space to educate people on CBD products. "(If) you put these in the hands of the dispensaries, they're not selling this stuff. There's no way they're going to sell this stuff," McClure told this outlet. "That's not their bread and butter. Their bread and butter is selling marijuana, that's what they do." ------ For more stories like this, sign up for our Ohio Politics newsletter. It's free, curated, and delivered straight to your inbox every Thursday evening. Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ohio Senate votes to confine intoxicating hemp to dispensaries, make sales 21+
Apr. 30—A bill banning intoxicating hemp products from being sold in gas stations, convenience stores or anywhere else outside of a licensed dispensary passed the Ohio Senate 33-0 this week. The bill, Senate Bill 86, now heads to the Ohio House for further consideration. It's the latest in a growing line of otherwise stalled attempts to regulate intoxicating hemp in Ohio. The bill targets "intoxicating hemp products," defined as any product with more than two milligrams of delta-9 THC (the psychoactive cannabinoid in marijuana) or more than 0.5 milligrams of any other "non-delta-9 THC" (like delta-8 or THCA, which can also make users feel high) per package. Under current law, those products — derived from hemp and protected under the federal Farm Bill — can be sold just about anywhere in the state and to anyone at the seller's discretion. Such products are often sold in gas stations, convenience stores or CBD stores, and have frequently been targeted by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and other opponents for their potential appeal to children through colorful packaging and subliminal branding. Under S.B. 86, those products could only be sold by licensed cannabis dispensaries, with a 10% tax that matches the tax Ohio currently has on recreational marijuana. "This bill simply closes loopholes that allows these dangerous products to be sold to our children," said state Sen. Steve Huffman, R-Tipp City, who jointly sponsors the bill. Robert McClure, a veteran and owner of a boutique "SunMed — Your CBD Store" in Centerville, told this news outlet that it's frustrating for his business — which doesn't sell to customers under 21 and focuses on wellness — to be lumped in with more problematic retailers. McClure told the Senate General Government Committee last month that S.B. 86 would make it illegal for him to carry most of his best-selling products and would put him "and many others who are doing it right out of business." In an interview with this outlet, McClure specifically noted that he would no longer be able to sell his "bread and butter:" tinctures of full spectrum CBD oil sold in monthslong supply. His two-month, 3,000 milligram oil tinctures, for example, contain 75 milligrams of THC — far above the bounds of what S.B. 86 allows to be sold outside dispensaries. McClure said CBD, which is non-intoxicating, trumps the THC contents in those tinctures by as much as 50-to-1. When this outlet talked with Senate leaders on both sides of the aisle, they downplayed McClure's concern about S.B. 86 putting him out of business. "I still think if they were operating before they'll be able to operate after," said Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon. "What I will say is that there are legitimate products that they can be selling to make money that will not put our children in jeopardy, and that's where I'll leave that," said Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood. McClure doubled down on the threat S.B. 86 poses to his business and maintained that shops like his, offering products like his, are an essential part of Ohio's wellness ecosystem and offer a space to educate people on CBD products. "(If) you put these in the hands of the dispensaries, they're not selling this stuff. There's no way they're going to sell this stuff," McClure told this outlet. "That's not their bread and butter. Their bread and butter is selling marijuana, that's what they do." Note: This is a developing story and may be updated as more information becomes available. ------ For more stories like this, sign up for our Ohio Politics newsletter. It's free, curated, and delivered straight to your inbox every Thursday evening. Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Backers of hemp regulation bill say intoxicating hemp products threaten Ohio's marijuana industry
Flowers of hemp plants that contain less that 0.3 percent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) the primary psychoactive substance in marijuana, to be used for student instruction at the Cleveland School of Cannabis, October 30, 2023, in Independence, Ohio. (Photo by Graham Stokes for Ohio Capital Journal. Republish photo only with original article.) Ohioans in the marijuana business, poison control workers, and religious organizations testified Tuesday in support of a bill that would regulate intoxicating hemp and drinkable cannabinoid products. Ohio Senate Bill 86 would require intoxicating hemp products to only be sold at adult-use dispensaries instead of allowing them to be sold at convenience stores, smoke shops, or gas stations. The bill would also impose a 15% tax on intoxicating hemp products and ban sales to anyone under 21. 'Ohio's legal cannabis industry is facing a growing crisis,' said Joshua Smith, the owner of Southern Ohio Botanicals, a licensed dispensary in Pike County. 'Fake, pop-up, poser dispensaries are exploiting loopholes in hemp laws to sell legitimate cannabis while misleading consumers into believing they are licensed establishments.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Eleven people, including Smith, submitted testimony in support of S.B. 86 during Tuesday's Ohio Senate General Government Committee meeting. Ohio state Sens. Steve Huffman, R-Tipp City, and Shane Wilkin, R-Hillsboro, introduced S.B. 86, which would only allow intoxicating hemp products to be sold at dispensaries if the products have been tested and comply with standards for packaging, labeling, and advertising. It would only apply to products that can be ingested or inhaled. The 2018 U.S. Farm Bill says hemp can be legally grown if it contains less than 0.3% THC. Ohio is one of about 20 states that does have any regulations around intoxicating hemp products, according to an Ohio State University Drug Enforcement and Policy Center study from November 2024. 'These unregulated dispensaries demonstrate a failure in Ohio's marijuana program,' Smith said. 'Without oversight, we have no way of verifying where their cannabis is sourced from or if it has been properly tested for safety. Unlike regulated dispensaries, where all products are prepackaged and lab-tested, these rogue shops weigh out cannabis in front of customers with no quality control measures in place.' Fadi Boumitri, CEO of Ascension BioMedical, a licensed cannabis cultivator in Oberlin, said there are 10 shops within a 1.5 mile radius of his house that sells intoxicating hemp products. 'As a small company that is a cultivation only, we are disproportionately impacted by the large and growing market for intoxicating hemp products,' he said. Dr. Hannah Hays, medical director of the Central Ohio Poison Center and chief of toxicology at Nationwide Children's Hospital, said accidental cannabis-related poisonings reported to the Ohio Poison Centers has increased 20-fold for all age groups since 2019. Exposure to cannabinoid products, including Delta 8, has increased more than 330% for young children since 2021, she said. 'When young children access these products, they can experience severe symptoms including hallucinations, confusion, loss of consciousness, seizures, and respiratory failure,' Hays said. 'I've cared for children exposed to intoxicating hemp products who have experienced severe and prolonged symptoms, including coma.' Chris Lindsey, director of state advocacy and public policy for the American Trade Association for Cannabis and Hemp, shared test results of intoxicating hemp products he purchased at a Columbus convenience store last year. 'There was one that was a piece of candy and that one simple piece had 500 milligrams of THC in it, so that would put a horse in the hospital,' Lindsey said. 'You literally have to take just individual small bites of this candy to avoid overdose.' Will Kuehnle, an associate director with the Catholic Conference of Ohio, called the spread of intoxicating hemp products a threat to the 'moral fabric' of Ohio. 'These products, chemically altered to maximize intoxication, are marketed in ways that confuse consumers, evade regulatory oversight, and, most alarmingly, end up in the hands of minors,' he said. Follow Capital Journal Reporter Megan Henry on Bluesky. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
