Gov. Brian Kemp of Georgia has a contentious hemp regulation bill perched on his desk, a piece of legislation aimed to impose age restrictions and enforce testing standards for hemp-derived products like CBD and Delta-8. The bill, which zoomed through the state legislature, rides on the coattails of "The Georgia Hemp Farming Act," as reported by WABE, with Kemp holding the power to sign, veto, or ignore the bill until its May 7 deadline.
Championed by Senator Sam Watson, the bill seeks to safeguard consumers and, in Watson's words, treat hemp products "the same as any other food product in the state," guidelines are in place for substances such as tobacco and alcohol yet we've got a deluge of unregulated hemp products, according to a statement obtained by WABE, Kemp's right-hand communication director, Garrison Douglas, has reassured the public that each bill will undergo "a thorough review process" post-adjournment of the General Assembly.
Supporters of the bill underscore the protective layer it could add for the youth, with Watson raising alarm over unsupervised sales of hemp items in gas stations where kids are exposed, yet opponents are mobilizing for a veto. Georgia Poison Center's top man, Gaylord Lopez, laments the bill's final form, deeming it a veil for legalizing marijuana and fretting over calls related to Delta-8 incidents — over 260 in three years as told to WABE. The bill fails, he argues, to halt the synthetic meddling with hemp which begets psychoactive derivatives.
Industry insiders, like Georgia Medical Cannabis Society's Yolanda Bennett, are pushing back as well, concerned over the possible economic domino effect that heightened tests and regulations could trigger saying that "Consumers won’t be able to afford it, retailers won’t be able to afford to eat the product on shelves, processors [will] be run out of business and farmers will end up growing other crops and leave the hemp," in an interview with WABE. There's angst amongst critics over potential heavy-handed law enforcement, with Atlanta defense attorney Tom Church warning of sheriffs potentially overreaching to target lawful CBD vendors.
Watson stands firm though, seeing the bill as the inaugural move in a series of regulatory steps for Georgia's budding hemp industry, while Lopez continues to press lawmakers to seal the gaps that allow these derivatives on shelves, maintaining that without legislative mindfulness, the issue will perpetuate as he explained to WABE.
