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Legislation to legalize hemp introduced in U.S. Senate by Ky. lawmaker

By WSAZ News Staff, Associated Press | Posted: Thu 12:00 PM, Apr 12, 2018

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WSAZ/AP) -- Bipartisan legislation was introduced in the Senate Thursday to legalize hemp as an agricultural commodity.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) introduced the Hemp Farming Act Thursday alongside U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), a ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee.

McConnell's press team tweeted, "Last year alone, the #hemp industry added 81 new jobs in #Kentucky and yielded more than $16 million for Kentucky farmers."

They also tweeted that hemp is "proving useful across a wide variety of innovative products," adding that the fibers can be added to concrete and home insulation. Hemp extracts are being researched for health benefits, they said, and some breweries in Kentucky have even crafted hemp-infused beer.

In March, McConnell said he wants to bring hemp production back into the mainstream by removing it from the controlled substances list that now associates it with its cousin — marijuana.

Kentucky has been at the forefront of hemp's comeback. Kentucky agriculture officials recently approved more than 12,000 acres (4,856 hectares) to be grown in the state this year, and 57 Kentucky processors are helping turn the raw product into a multitude of products.


McConnell said his bill attracted a bipartisan group of co-sponsors. He said the measure would allow states to have primary regulatory oversight of hemp production if they submit plans to federal agriculture officials outlining how they would monitor production.

Growing hemp without a federal permit has long been banned due to its classification as a controlled substance related to marijuana. Hemp and marijuana are the same species, but hemp has a negligible amount of THC, the psychoactive compound that gives marijuana users a high.
http://www.wsaz.com/content/news/Legislation-to-legalize-hemp-introduced-in-US-Senate-by-Ky-lawmaker-479533693.html