Federal hemp ban delayed by a month

The House last week passed a short-term government funding bill that will give the intoxicating hemp industry more time to fight a looming crackdown on its products (Source: “Hemp ban set to be delayed a month after House passes funding bill,” The Hill, Sept. 1). 

The continuing resolution, which funds the government through Dec. 11, overwhelmingly passed both the House and Senate and now heads to the desk of President Trump. 

The measure postpones for a month a federal ban on most hemp-derived THC products, including gummies and beverages.

Trump signed the hemp ban into law last year as part of a broader spending bill to reopen the government after a record-long shutdown. The legislation closed what critics called the “hemp loophole,” brought about by the 2018 Farm Bill, which removed hemp from the controlled substances list and opened a massive new business environment.

Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson was among 35 attorneys general and chief legal officers who signed a letter last month urging Congress to keep federal restrictions on intoxicating hemp products in place.
Wilson noted that several states, including Ohio, have already begun changing their laws in anticipation of the federal changes. Ohio lawmakers passed Senate Bill 56 at the end of 2025, which, among other things, aligns Ohio’s definition of hemp with the looming federal changes. A judge later blocked enforcement of the Ohio law, allowing 10 companies to continue selling the products.