Industrial hemp; updates laws to address the new hemp producer license. (HB2078)

Introduced By

Del. Danny Marshall (R-Danville) with support from co-patrons Del. James Edmunds (R-South Boston), and Del. Mark Keam (D-Vienna)

Progress

✓	Introduced
☐	Passed Committee
☐	Passed House
☐	Passed Senate
☐	Signed by Governor
☐	Became Law

Description

Industrial hemp; federal hemp producer license; emergency. Updates Virginia's industrial hemp laws to address the new hemp producer license issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The bill changes drug laws to exclude the industrial hemp possessed by a federally licensed hemp producer from the definition of "marijuana" and to exclude certain amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in such industrial hemp from the prohibition on THC. The bill exempts federally licensed hemp producers from state industrial hemp registration requirements and adds such producers to the list of those eligible to receive funds from the Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Fund. The bill provides that no grower, agent of such grower, or federally licensed producer shall be prosecuted for possession of industrial hemp or Cannabis sativa with a THC concentration that does not exceed the concentration established in certain federal regulations and prohibits the Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services from deeming a grower negligent if the grower makes reasonable efforts to grow industrial hemp but grows Cannabis sativa with a THC concentration that does not exceed the concentration established in federal regulations. The bill makes other changes to industrial hemp laws, including (i) limiting the application fee for registration of growers, dealers, and producers to $250; (ii) excluding from the definition of "dealer" any retail establishment that sells a completed product containing industrial hemp; (iii) making optional the monitoring and random testing of industrial hemp by the Commissioner and authorizing the random sampling of such hemp; (iv) removing the requirement that the Attorney General of the United States be notified when a Virginia grower, dealer, or processor exceeds the federal THC limit; and (v) directing the Commissioner to adopt regulations establishing a fee structure for registration. Finally, the bill exempts employees of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services from prosecution for possession or distribution of industrial hemp when possession is necessary in the performance of their duties. The bill contains an emergency clause. Read the Bill »

Status

07/25/2021: Awaiting a Vote in the Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee

History

Date	Action
01/12/2021	Prefiled and ordered printed with emergency clause; offered 01/13/21 21102692D
01/12/2021	Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources
01/20/2021	Reported from Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources with amendment(s) (22-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
01/21/2021	Impact statement from DPB (HB2078)
01/21/2021	Read first time
01/22/2021	Passed by for the day
01/25/2021	Motion to rerefer to committee agreed to
01/25/2021	Rereferred to Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources
02/03/2021	House committee, floor amendments and substitutes offered
02/03/2021	Reported from Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources with substitute (22-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/03/2021	Committee substitute printed 21103954D-H1
02/03/2021	Read first time
02/04/2021	Read second time
02/04/2021	Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources amendments rejected
02/04/2021	Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources substitute agreed to 21103954D-H1
02/04/2021	Engrossed by House - committee substitute HB2078H1
02/05/2021	Read third time and defeated by House (77-Y 22-N 1-A)
02/05/2021	VOTE: Passage Emergency (77-Y 22-N 1-A) (see vote tally)
02/05/2021	Constitutional reading dispensed
02/05/2021	Reconsideration of defeated action agreed to by House
02/05/2021	Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources
02/05/2021	Passed by temporarily
02/05/2021	Passed House (87-Y 10-N 2-A)
02/05/2021	VOTE: Passage Emergency #2 (87-Y 10-N 2-A) (see vote tally)
02/05/2021	Continued to 2021 Sp. Sess. 1 in Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources (14-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/15/2021	Impact statement from DPB (HB2078H1)
02/16/2021	Reported from Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources (13-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/17/2021	Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/18/2021	Read third time
02/18/2021	Passed Senate (38-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/18/2021	Reconsideration of Senate passage agreed to by Senate (39-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/18/2021	Passed Senate (39-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/22/2021	Enrolled
02/22/2021	Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB2078ER)
02/22/2021	Impact statement from DPB (HB2078ER)
02/22/2021	Signed by President
02/24/2021	Signed by Speaker
02/25/2021	Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on February 25, 2021
02/25/2021	G Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., March 31, 2021
03/12/2021	G Approved by Governor-Chapter 110 (effective 3/12/21)
03/12/2021	G Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0110)