Congress Quietly Bans Most Intoxicating Hemp Products — Could a $28B Industry Pay the Price?

Congress quietly inserts broad hemp restriction into funding law

Fresh from the longest government shutdown in U.S. history and with millions of Americans bracing for an economic slowdown, lawmakers returned to work and tucked an unexpected policy change into a major funding bill: a provision that would bar the sale of most intoxicating hemp-derived products.

Under federal law, hemp is defined as cannabis containing 0.3% THC or less by dry weight; anything above that threshold is classified as marijuana and regulated by individual states. The 2018 Agriculture Improvement Act opened the door for hemp-derived products, and in recent years the market expanded to include intoxicating compounds such as Delta-8 THC.

The Senate Appropriations Committee summarized the new language as aiming to “prevent 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 restriction was included in the funding bill passed by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump; reporting from industry outlet Marijuana Moment notes the change will not take effect until one year after enactment.

Economic and public-safety claims collide

Industry groups warn the provision could devastate a roughly $28 billion U.S. hemp industry and jeopardize about 300,000 jobs in farming, manufacturing and retail in states such as Texas, Kentucky and Utah. Supporters say the restriction is necessary to close an apparent loophole that allowed companies to convert low-THC hemp into intoxicating products marketed widely to consumers.

“I led the effort to legalize industrial hemp,” said Senator Mitch McConnell (R‑Ky.), who was credited with pushing the hemp language into the bill. He argued companies had “taken legal amounts of THC from hemp and turned it into intoxicating substances, and then marketing it to children in candy-like packaging… so children end up being the unknowing consumers of these poisonous products.”

The data complicate a simple narrative. From 2017 through 2021, 7,043 children under six nationwide were recorded as having ingested THC edibles, though reports do not reliably distinguish between hemp-derived THC and stronger, state-regulated marijuana products. Deaths attributed to cannabis use remain in the single digits; in at least one fatal case, an autopsy revealed multiple other substances present, leaving THC’s direct role uncertain.

Critics point out that other public-safety threats are far larger: in 2021, motor-vehicle crashes killed 1,184 U.S. children under 14, and firearms were responsible for 4,752 child deaths that year. They say targeting hemp represents a misallocation of political energy at a time when many Americans are struggling with basic economic insecurity — surveys show roughly 70% of adults say they could not cover an unexpected medical bill without selling assets or borrowing.

What happens next

The one-year delay before the restriction takes effect gives industry groups, regulators and states time to prepare and potentially challenge the change in court. The law also raises questions about federal versus state authority: many states have their own rules for hemp and marijuana products, and some have explicitly allowed hemp-derived intoxicants while others have restricted them.

Ultimately, the provision will reshape parts of the hemp market and intensify debate over how to balance consumer safety, child protection, and the economic interests of farmers and retailers. Observers say the coming months could bring legal challenges, further regulatory clarification, and industry consolidation if companies cannot adapt to the new federal standard.