A group of hemp sellers is in court challenging a new Virginia law, arguing that the state is illegally banning hemp that can be sold under a 2018 federal law and threatening to wipe out a bustling market of products used for pain relief and other purposes.
Virginia
Hemp businesses sue Virginia over new THC limits
Some sellers market these products in flashy packaging resembling candy wrappers or kids’ snacks — and the Virginia law was billed as a way to curb those practices. Attorney General Jason S. Miyares (R), who is being sued along with Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), who signed the measure into law, has issued public warnings about the risks Delta-8 products pose for children.
But the two hemp sellers and one consumer suing Virginia say that the new law goes too far and conflicts with federal law by rolling in hemp used for pain relief or sleep issues into the list of banned products. U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema has scheduled a hearing on the case for Sept. 29 in Alexandria federal court.
“We are not challenging the new packaging laws. We are not trying to make it easy for Delta-8 gummies to get into the hands of kids,” said James Markels, the attorney for hemp retailer Northern Virginia Hemp and Agriculture, hemp grower Franny’s Operations in North Carolina, and hemp consumer Rose Lane from Vienna, Va.
“We have an economic report that says this law is going to wipe out 80 percent of the current hemp retail industry in Virginia. This was intended. This is not a mistake. This is not an unintended consequence.”
The lawsuit says the federal Agriculture Improvement Act, or “farm bill,” that President Donald Trump signed in 2018 defined hemp as any part or derivative of cannabis “with a Delta-9 concentration of not more than 0.3 percent.” As of July, Virginia’s law defines “hemp products” and “industrial hemp extracts” more broadly: anything with a total THC concentration of up to 0.3 percent, including not just Delta-9 but every other THC variant.
Delta-9 is the main intoxicating component in marijuana and its derivatives. Markels conceded Delta-8 and similar, less potent components can still be intoxicating. But, he said, it’s up to Congress and not Virginia policymakers to decide which kinds of THC should be included in the limits states can set for regulating sales, and Congress has not taken up the issue.
“Congress is well aware what Virginia is complaining about, but has decided that it’s not as serious a problem as Virginia has made it out to be,” Markels said.
A spokeswoman for Miyares said “he is dedicated to combating the rise of accidental THC poisonings in children, and is concerned about the rise of dangerous, counterfeit THC-infused products marketed towards our vulnerable youth.” She declined to comment specifically on the lawsuit.
Spokesmen for Youngkin did not respond to a request for comment.