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Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita has sent a letter to several of the state’s top elected officials, urging them to reconsider legislation he says doesn’t do enough to regulate THC.
Rokita sent the letter to Gov. Mike Braun, House Speaker Todd Huston, Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray and members of a legislative conference committee considering Senate Bill 478, which establishes certain regulatory testing and packaging requirements for the distribution and sale of craft hemp flower products.
“This legislation threatens public safety and undermines our state’s laws by creating enough loopholes for high-potency, intoxicating THC products to be sold under the guise of craft hemp regulation,” Rokita said in a press release. “This isn’t about taking away your grandma’s CBD oil – it’s about protecting Hoosiers from high-potency THC products that mirror and often exceed the intoxicating effects of marijuana.”
A conference committee was held for the bill on April 21.
Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, said the legislation is to put guardrails on the sale and distribution of Delta-8 products.
“One of my basic concerns has been that the fact that if we do nothing, as we have done for the last 20 years on this product, 14-year-olds who walk into a cannabis store and buy the product, and there’s no, absolutely no regulation whatsoever,” Holdman said.
While many conference committee members spoke in support of the bill, some did not. Rep. Timothy Wesco, R-Osacola, said he is against regulation, but if they are going to do it, then the amount is too high.
“I think the dosage up to 100 milligrams per piece is far too great and should be significantly reduced,” Wesco said.
He added that the number of permits should be decreased as well.
Rep. J.D. Prescott, R-Union City, echoed similar concerns with the legislation.
The 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp as cannabis with 0.3% or less delta-9 THC by dry weight, but did not address other intoxicating isomers like delta-8 or delta-10.
Rokita said manufacturers could exploit this loophole, converting hemp-derived CBD into synthetic THC isomers marketed as legal hemp.
“Hoosiers deserve clear, consistent laws that prioritize consumer safety and prevent the proliferation of minimally regulated substances,” Rokita said in a press release.
Rokita said lawmakers should classify any product exceeding 0.3% total THC by dry weight, including synthetics, as marijuana.
“For the sake of all Hoosiers and, most importantly, Hoosier children, I strongly encourage you to reconsider this legislation,” Rokita wrote in the letter. “Most importantly, I request you consider prohibiting the sale of all synthetically produced cannabinoids. In the absence of such action, you should dramatically reduce the potency cap to 2.5 mg per serving, limit the distribution of these products in retail stores, prohibit online sales, and tax the sale of these products, which the bill currently does not do, so that Hoosiers are not left holding the bag for unintended consequences to their communities.”
If the conferees do not sign off on the committee report, then the bill is dead. If they do agree on the report then the Senate conference committee will vote on the amended legislation.
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