A new provision slipped under the radar in the bill that ended the government shutdown has some local businesses scrambling to address their options.
While many are glad to see any sort of compromise lead to government workers heading back to their jobs and much-needed SNAP payments flowing, the hemp industry in Louisiana took a sucker punch as part of the legislation.
According to Joe Gerrity, Chief Executive of Crescent Canna, the secrecy was the entire point.
“That’s the only way they could get this through. Mitch McConnell knows how unpopular this is. Everyone who voted for it knows how unpopular this is. We have bipartisan support for these products remaining legal. They just weren’t able to do what they wanted to do through traditional political channels, so they snuck it into an appropriations bill, which is the opposite of how every single politician argues we should be legislating,” Gerrity went on to emphasize.
According to Congressman Troy Carter, “The growing use of hemp products in Louisiana shows the need for the state to finally pass regulated adult use of cannabis, which has proven health benefits and has been especially helpful for cancer patients. These benefits include chronic pain management, nausea reduction, and anxiety relief. Regulation will provide a safe product for consumers, new economic opportunities for small businesses, tax revenue for the state, and make it easier to catch bad actors. It’s past time we treat cannabis like any other industry."
As of now, the ban goes into effect one year from now.
However, Crescent Canna’s Joe Gerrity is hopeful that the legal battle ahead will move in the industry’s favor. “The fight has just begun. This was snuck into a government reopening bill and has nothing to do with hemp. This was done because it’s wildly unpopular politically to ban these products, and they didn’t want to have that fight openly,” emphasized Gerrity.
“This is not a small business anymore. The hemp market is a $30+ billion per year industry that employs over 100,000 people across the country. It’s a lifeline for small business owners and farmers who are seeing declining alcohol sales. We’re ready for a fight,” added Gerrity.