The recently confirmed president of the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) has approved a final state rule that lays out hemp industry regulations, amid outstanding issues from activists about various provisions.
Tom Vilsack (the agriculture secretary who‘s considered a friend to the hemp sector), ascended the legislation after a departmental hearing that started during Joe Biden’s transition. As initially stipulated, it will be implemented on 22nd March.
On Monday, Bill Richmond (president of the Agriculture Department’s Local Hemp Production Program) said in an email that a portion of the recent administration, the final hemp regulation was under more departmental review. He added that the legislation has been approved by Secretary Tom to go ahead as launched in the State Register.
Another message from the agency’s Agricultural Marketing Service asserted that as a component of Biden’s transition, America’s Agriculture Department and other departments used the opportunity to reevaluate pending and new regulatory measures. It further said that routine procedure is conducted to make sure new and longstanding measures are resourced and structured appropriately.
In January, USDA released the final hemp rule, almost two years after the plant was state authorized under the 2018 Farm Bill. The hemp industry participants claim the implementation of these rules connotes a step toward what will offer ventures the required counsel. However, they have also highlighted various policies that they expect to recap as the market grows, for instance, the Department of Agriculture’s hemp testing needs.
With Vilsack’s final legalization, the laws won’t be tabled for any recap or hearing before the effective date. However, stakeholders and activists say they won’t stop pushing for amendments as the market grows.
Jonathan Miller, America’s Hemp Roundtable’s general counsel said that they‘re happy about improvements of the final rule. He was referring to changes made by the department after launching its original proposed regulations.
