Iowa House passes consumable hemp regulations, including age threshold and potency limit
Iowa House lawmakers approved a bill ramping up regulations on hemp products Tuesday, capping how much THC can be contained in consumables and imposing an age-21 requirement to buy them.
House File 2605, which passed on a 78-16 vote, imposes a limit of four milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) per serving in a consumable product, and no more than 10mg per container, which would apply to popular drinks.
The bill also ramps up regulations and penalties for violating Iowa's existing hemp possession, sales or manufacturing laws, and prohibits synthetic THC. And consumable THC products would be required to have a warning label, much like alcoholic products.
Rep. Steve Holt, R-Denison, the bill's sponsor, said the changes to Iowa's hemp laws were necessary to regulate the availability and potency of consumable products.
"It is a bit of the wild, wild west out there in Iowa right now, thanks to the loopholes we did not know we created," Holt said.
Democrats said they were concerned that the regulations would hamper both local businesses that sell THC products and Iowans who rely on them for medical reasons.
"This legislation will make it much more difficult for people in the state of Iowa," said Rep. John Forbes, D-Urbandale. "They're going to go out and buy this stuff online … they won't have a business they can go into."
Rep. Bob Kressig, D-Cedar Falls, warned that upward of 1,100 retailers in Iowa could be affected by the rules, and that container potency limits and warning labels could spur some national providers to avoid shipping products to Iowa — and send customers across state lines.
"They could go to Minnesota. They could go to Illinois. They could go to Missouri," Kressig said.
Holt urged for passage of the regulations that he said in hindsight should have been included in earlier law.
"In the legislation we passed, there were no provisions for age requirements precisely because we did not believe, or have any idea that there would be a need, since we had limited the THC," Holt said. "We were not approving THC to be used in intoxicating products, or we would have added age restrictions."
The bill now heads to the Senate ahead of a Friday legislative "funnel" deadline.
Des Moines-based THC drink line lobbies against bill
A previous version of the bill that contained stricter potency limits spurred online advocacy efforts by one local vendor.
Climbing Kites, a line of THC-infused sparkling water drinks developed by Lua Brewing and distributed by Big Grove Brewery, wrote in a social media post this week that the legislation would "gut" Iowa's hemp market.
"From the small business retailers to producers, suppliers and consumers — this devastates the work we've been doing," the brand wrote on Instagram. "If having access to 2mg+ matters to you, take the time to have your voice heard."
Galen Bacharier covers politics for the Register. Reach him at gbacharier@registermedia.com or (573) 219-7440, and follow him on Twitter @galenbacharier.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa House passes age minimum, potency limit on THC for consumable hemp
