NI Staff

Top Takeaways:

• Industry warning: Cannabis attorney Rod Kight says North Carolina’s proposed hemp legislation would effectively eliminate much of the state’s legal hemp market rather than regulate it.
• CBD concerns: Kight argues that the bill’s language could unintentionally prohibit many full-spectrum CBD products and impose adult-only restrictions on non-intoxicating cannabinoids.
• House vote pending: The legislation cleared the Senate but still requires approval from the North Carolina House, which reconvenes on July 27.

A prominent cannabis attorney is urging North Carolina lawmakers to reject sweeping hemp legislation, which he says would shut down much of the state’s legal hemp industry rather than establish a workable regulatory framework.

In a July 13 legal analysis, cannabis attorney Rod Kight argued that the conference report for House Bill 328, titled Regulate Hemp-Derived Consumables, replaces regulation with prohibition and could criminalize many hemp-derived products currently sold statewide.

The North Carolina Senate approved the bill on July 2 by a 37-6 vote but has not yet been considered by the House, which is scheduled to reconvene on July 27. Because the conference report cannot be amended, House members must approve or reject the measure in its entirety.

Kight, who represents cannabis businesses internationally, wrote that responsible members of the hemp industry have long supported “reasonable age restrictions, standardized testing, good manufacturing practices, uniform labeling, child-resistant packaging, responsible marketing rules, and enforcement against bad actors.”

Instead, he argues, HB 328 “takes a fundamentally different approach.”

One of Kight’s primary concerns is the bill’s proposed 0.4-milligram total THC limit per retail container. “Four-tenths of one milligram per package is not a reasonable adult-use potency limit. It is a ban dressed up as a testing standard,” Kight wrote.

According to the analysis, the proposal would make legality depend on the total THC in an entire retail package rather than per serving, potentially removing many hemp-derived THC gummies, beverages, tinctures, vape products, and THCA flower from lawful commerce in North Carolina.

Kight also argues that the bill’s language creates unintended consequences for CBD products.

“HB 328 also creates a serious CBD problem,” he wrote, arguing that many full-spectrum CBD products containing naturally occurring trace amounts of THC could become controlled substances under the proposed framework. He further contends that the bill’s age restrictions would apply broadly to ingestible hemp-derived cannabinoids, including CBD, CBG, and other non-intoxicating compounds.

Beyond product standards, Kight criticizes the legislation for relying primarily on criminal penalties rather than establishing what he considers a workable licensing and compliance system. “Regulation creates rules for a lawful market. But HB 328 would eliminate most of the existing market,” he wrote.

Kight concludes that lawmakers should reject the conference report and return to legislation focused on age restrictions, quality control, testing, packaging, and truthful labeling rather than on broad prohibitions. “North Carolina can regulate hemp responsibly. HB 328 does not do that,” he wrote.