LA Times: PHI’s Dr. Lynn Silver Discusses New CA Proposal for Emergency Regulations of Intoxicating Hemp Products

“Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed emergency regulations aimed at reining in the manufacture and sale of illegal hemp products that contain intoxicating cannabinoids such as THC.

The new rules would close loopholes that manufacturers in the “intoxicating hemp” industry have exploited to skirt restrictions on hemp products, allowing them to sell consumable goods with heavily inebriating effects, Newsom’s office said in a statement Friday morning.

The products have become widely available at some smoke shops, gas stations and other retailers in recent years.

The regulations would require that such products contain no detectable levels of THC — the main psychoactive component in cannabis — or other cannabinoids, that packages of the products are limited to five servings and that their sale is restricted to people 21 or older.

“We’re taking action to close loopholes and increase enforcement to prevent children from accessing these dangerous hemp and cannabis products,” Newsom said in the statement.

Dr. Lynn Silver, senior advisor at the Public Health Institute, an Oakland-based independent nonprofit advocacy organization that advocated for AB 2223, said the new regulations “represent tremendous progress in protecting children and teenagers.”

The new rules are a response “to increasing health incidents related to illegal hemp products, which state regulators have found sold across the state, especially beverages and food products. Children are particularly at risk should they consume these products,” Newsom’s statement Friday said.”

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