Washington, DC—On November 12, President Donald Trump signed a funding bill that led to the reopening of the government folllowing a prolonged shutdown. The bill will provide financing for several agencies through fiscal year 2026. It also has significant ramifications on the future of the hemp-derived THC industry. Valued at $28.4 billion dollars, the hemp market is responsible for generating $1.5 billion in state tax revenue, employing more than 300,000 Americans, and providing health and well-being support to consumers, according to the U.S. Hemp Roundtable. Industry execs say all of those benefits are now being threatened due to congressional restrictions that would recriminalize THC from hemp products, changing the 2018 Farm Bill.
"The U.S. Hemp Roundtable condemns the latest proposed Senate language to recriminalize hemp products, a harmful decision by Congress that threatens to eliminate America’s $28.4 billion hemp industry and jeopardizes more than 300,000 American jobs," according to a press release issued by the U.S. Hemp Roundtable. The coalition, which is made up of companies and organizations resolved to providing safe hemp and CBD products, cautioned that the legislation would wipe out 95% of the industry, shuttering small businesses and American farms while costing states $1.5 billion in lost tax revenue.
In a last-minute effort to block the legislation, Senator Rand Paul submitted an emergency amendment to strike the hemp ban from the proposed legislation, but was ultimately unsuccessful.
Of Senator Paul's efforts, Jonathan Miller, U.S. Hemp Roundtable General Counsel, said, “Our industry is being used as a pawn as leaders work to reopen the government. Recriminalizing hemp will force American farms and businesses to close and disrupt the wellbeing of countless Americans who depend on hemp. We support Senator Rand Paul’s efforts to push back on this language and will continue to fight alongside him for a regulated, safe, and robust hemp industry.”
Under the new restrictions, effective November 13, 2026, any consumer products containing delta-8 THC, delta-10 THC, HHC, and THCA would no longer be legal. This includes: gummies, chews, chocolates, baked edibles, vapes, oils, tinctures or any other product with any THC dose higher than 0.4 mg per package or container, causing the industry to suffer a $79 billion dollar economic loss. “We have lost the battle this time,” said Miller. “In effect, this is a total, all out, complete ban on hemp products in the United States.”
Ongoing efforts
Hemp industry advocates like Jack Sherrie, Founder & CEO of natural THC seltzer brand Delta, Eric Zipperle and Jim Higdon Co-Founders of Cornbread Hemp (Kentucky-based producers of organic CBD products including oils, edibles, and topicals), and organizations including HBA: Hemp Beverage Alliance and CABA: Coalition for Adult Beverage Alternatives, have made their stance against the legislation known. Cornbread Hemp issued a request for action via email stating: "Mitch McConnell, one of the most powerful members of the US Senate, is determined to destroy the hemp industry by hijacking the agriculture appropriations bill that will be used to end the government shutdown. If McConnell is successful, he will re-criminalize all THC from hemp, which will render all the products made by Cornbread Hemp to be federally illegal."
The U.S. Hemp Roundtable vowed to continue its opposition efforts in the coming months. "The hemp industry is committed to continuing the fight. During the one-year proposed moratorium, U.S. Hemp Roundtable will work closely with lawmakers to reverse the ban and replace it with responsible, science-based regulations that crackdown on misleading and purely synthetic products, create restrictions that keep products out of the hands of children, and promote standard manufacturing practices. Unlike these regulations, the current proposal fails to protect consumers and risks fueling a dangerous black market."
