A newly proposed bill in Wisconsin would create a regulatory framework to keep hemp-derived THC legal in the state after Congress earlier this year approved a federal ban.
The bill, backed by a bipartisan group of state senators, would introduce some limits. It would ban the sale of intoxicating hemp products to anyone under 21, and it would put new requirements on hemp producers including independent testing and child-proof packaging, according to Wisconsin Public Radio.
As the report points out, the new legislation would go up against a similar bill that would allow bars and retailers with liquor licenses to sell hemp-derived THC products while charging hemp producers for new licenses and permits.
Despite the differences, it appears both bills are in response to the recently signed U.S. government spending bill that undoes the language in the 2018 Farm Bill that allowed a hemp-derived THC industry to rapidly grow over the past few years.
The Senate Appropriations Committee outlined the key takeaways of the 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. One of them is a hemp products ban, which the committee said "prevents the unregulated sale of intoxicating hemp-based or hemp-derived products, including Delta-8, from being sold online, in gas stations, and corner stores, while preserving non-intoxicating CBD and industrial hemp products."
The language could largely dismantle the U.S. intoxicating hemp market, which has grown into a $28 billion industry that supports 329,000 American jobs and contributes $1.5 billion annually in tax revenue.
The new federal intoxicating hemp product ban is not set to take effect until next year but opponents have already proposed regulation instead of prohibition and more time before the ban kicks in.
