California Hemp Legislation 2007
Hemp Bill AB 1147 Vetoed by the Gubernator in Oct. 2006, but has been re-introduced
as AB 684 in 2007. He vetoed this one as well. Big green guy.
Bill AB 1147 introduced by
Assemblymen Mark Leno(D) (San Francisco), and Check Devore(R) (Newport Beach) in 2006. It passed both the Calif. State Assembly, Senate, and Senate
Agriculture committee.
The Governor of California, in his infinite
wisdom, vetoed this important bill in October 2006, was re-introduced in 2007 and was called AB 684. Again, in October, 2007, the governor vetoed this watered-down version. We suspect he wants to run for the US Senate, and did not want to be perceived as being "pro-pot".
He's simply out of touch with the people of California. A 2007 poll showed that approx. 75% of Californians are in favor of legalizing industrial hemp. He knows in his heart of heart that the "rope is not the dope", but lacked the courage to legalize this vitally important plant. Hopefully a true environmentalist with the guts to do what is right will become the next governor.
Below is a reprint, courtesy of Votehemp.com
California Legislature Passes Industrial Hemp Bill for Second Time in Two Years
AB 684 Would Allow Farmers to Grow Non-Drug Varieties of Cannabis
New Compromise Legislation is Ripe for Governor's Support
SACRAMENTO, CA
— Last night, California's Senate and Assembly
each voted to approve AB
684, the California Industrial Hemp Farming
Act of 2007. The legislation gives some California
farmers the right to grow non-psychoactive industrial
hemp which is commonly used in everything from
food, clothing, paper and body care to bio-fuel
and even auto parts. The bill now goes to Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger for his signature.
The text of the legislation can be found online.
AB 684 was authored by Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) and Assemblyman Chuck DeVore
(R-Irvine). Thanks to their leadership, this is the second time in two
years that a bi-partisan hemp farming bill has passed the legislature.
Last year, Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed a similar bill, AB 1147. The
new version of the bill addresses his concerns.
"The
new legislation significantly limits the scope of hemp farming to just
four agricultural counties, includes a sunset provision, and contains
rules on testing crops to ensure the industrial hemp contains less than
3/10 of 1% (0.3%) THC," says Vote Hemp legal council and San Francisco
attorney Patrick Goggin. "This bill is a response to the Governor's
detailed explanation of his veto last year. Everyone knows hemp farming
is consistent with California's efforts to be a leader on U.S.
environmental policy. We believe this new hemp legislation is deserving
of the Governor's signature," adds Goggin.
Farmers would only be able to grow industrial
hemp as a pilot program in four counties —
Imperial, Kings, Mendocino and Yolo. Sales of
industrial hemp products, especially in the food
and body care markets, are skyrocketing, prompting
the TODAY Show to dub hemp "a hot food trend"
for 2007. Exports from Canada of hemp seed grew
300% between 2006 and 2007. Today more than 30
industrialized nations grow industrial hemp and
export it to the U.S. Hemp is the only crop that
is illegal for American farmers to grow yet
legal to import.
There is strong support for hemp in California.
A telephone poll of likely California voters,
taken from February 22-26 of this year, showed
a total of 71% (+/- 3.5%) support changes to state
law that would allow farmers to grow hemp. The
survey was conducted by the respected research
firm Zogby International
on behalf of Vote Hemp and five manufacturers
of hemp food products, including ALPSNACK,
French
Meadow Bakery, Living
Harvest, Nature's
Path Organic Foods and Nutiva.
Poll
questions and results regarding industrial hemp farming policy and
consumer attitudes on hemp products and nutrition can be viewed online.
See: Industrial hemp’s double dividend: a study for the USA
BILL
ANALYSIS _ AB 1147 _ Page 1 CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS AB 1147
(Leno) As Amended August 7, 2006 Majority vote _
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|ASSEMBLY: |44-32|(January 26, |SENATE: |26-13|(August 16, | | | |2006)
| | |2006) |
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Original Committee Reference: _ PUB. S. _
_ SUMMARY _ : Clarifies the definition of "marijuana" contained in
the Uniformed Controlled Substance Act (CSA) to exclude
industrial hemp.
_ The Senate amendments _ :
1)Include in the definition of "industrial hemp" the seeds
produced from non-psychoactive varieties of the plant Cannabis
sativa L.
2)Delete the requirement that the industrial hemp be cultivated
from seeds originating in the State of California.
3)Require the industrial hemp be cultivated only from seeds
imported in accordance with the laws of the United States
(U.S.) or from seeds grown in California from feral plants,
cultivated plants, or plants grown in a research setting.
4)Mandate a person who grows industrial hemp prior to the
harvest of each crop to obtain a laboratory test report
indicating the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) levels of a random
sampling of the dried flowering tops of the industrial hemp
grown.
5)Require a laboratory test report be issued by a laboratory
registered with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration to
state the percentage content of THC, and indicate the date and
location of samples taken.
6)Specify that if the laboratory test report indicates a
percentage content of THC that is equal to or less than
three-tenths of 1%, the words "PASSED AS CALIFORNIA INDUSTRIAL
_ AB 1147
_
Page 2
HEMP" shall appear at or near the top of the laboratory test
report. If the laboratory test report indicates a percentage
content of THC that is greater than three-tenths of 1%, the
words "FAILED AS CALIFORNIA INDUSTRIAL HEMP" shall appear at
or near the top of the laboratory test report.
7)Provide that the person who grows industrial hemp shall retain
a copy of the laboratory test report for two years from its
date of sampling, make the laboratory test report available to
law enforcement officials upon request, and shall provide a
copy of the laboratory test report to each person purchasing,
transporting, or otherwise obtaining the oil, cake, or seed of
the plant.
8)Clarify that notwithstanding the provisions of this bill, a
person may not engage in the cultivation, production, or
possession of resin, flowering tops, or leaves that have been
removed from the field of cultivation and separated from the
other constituent parts of the industrial hemp plant unless it
is necessary for a grower, agent of a grower, employee or
agent of an employee of a laboratory registered with the
federal Drug Enforcement Administration to perform the
laboratory testing provided by this bill.
9)Except conduct in accordance with the laws of the U.S. from
the prohibition against transportation or sale across state
borders of seed of any variety of Cannabis sativa L. that is
capable of germination.
10)Provide that all industrial hemp seed sold for planting in
California shall be from a crop having no more than
three-tenths of 1% THC contained in a random sampling of the
dried flowering tops and tested, as specified.
11)State sampling shall occur as practicable when the THC
content of the leaves surrounding the seeds is at its peal and
shall commence as the seeds being to mature, when the first
seeds of approximately 50% of the plants are resistant to
compression.
12)Provide that the entire fruit-bearing part of the plant
including the seeds shall be used as a sample. The sample cut
shall be made directly underneath the inflorescence found in
the top one-third of the plant.
_ AB 1147
_ Page 3
13)Specify if the required laboratory test report indicated a
percentage content of the THC that is greater than
three-tenths of 1% and does not exceed 1%, the person who
grows industrial hemp shall submit additional samples for
testing.
14)Require a person to destroy industrial hemp grown upon
receipt of a first laboratory test report indicating a
percentage content of THC that exceeds 1% or a second
laboratory test report, as specified, indicating a percentage
content of THC that exceeds three-tenth of 1%. The
destruction shall take place as soon as practicable but no
later than 45 days after the receipt of a laboratory test
report that requires crop destruction.
15)State crop destruction, as defined, shall not apply to
industrial hemp grown in a research setting if the destruction
of the industrial hemp grown will impede the development of
types of industrial hemp that will comply with the
three-tenths of 1% THC limit, as specified.
16)Make clarifying, technical amendments.
_ EXISTING LAW _ :
1)Provides that "marijuana" is all parts of the plant Cannabis
sativa L., whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the
resin extracted from any part of the plant; and, every
compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or
preparation of the plant, its seeds or resin. It does not
include the mature stalks of the plant, fiber produced from
the stalks, oil or cake made from the seeds of the plant, any
other compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or
preparation of the mature stalks (except the resin extracted
there from), fiber, oil, or cake, or the sterilized seed of
the plant which is incapable of germination.
2)States that except as authorized by law, every person who
possesses any concentrated cannabis shall be punished by
imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not more than
one year, by a fine of not more than $500, by both such fine
and imprisonment, or shall be punished by imprisonment in the
state prison.
_ AB 1147
_
Page 4
_ AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY _ , this bill:
1)Defined "industrial hemp" as an agricultural field crop
limited to the non-psychoactive varieties of the of the plant
Cannabis sativa L., having no more than three-tenths of 1% THC
contained in the dry flowering tops and cultivated from seeds
originating in California, and processed exclusively for the
purpose of producing the mature stalks of the plant and
by-products of the stalk and seed.
2)Stated that nothing in this section shall be construed to
authorize the cultivation, production, or possession of resin,
flowering tops, or leaves that have been removed from the
field of cultivation and separated from the other constituent
parts of the industrial hemp plant.
3)Prohibited the transportation and/or sale of a seed capable of
germination across state lines of any variety of Cannabis
sativa L. and any cultivation of the industrial hemp plant
that is not grown in a research setting or as an agricultural
field crop.
4)Found and declared the following:
a) Industrial hemp is produced in at least 30 nations
including Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Romania,
Australia, and China and is used by industry to produce
thousands of products including: paper; textiles; food;
oils; automotive parts; and, personal care products;
b) The U.S. Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit has ruled in
_ Hemp Industries v. Drug Enforcement Administration _ that the
Controlled Substances Act of 1970 explicitly excludes
non-psychoactive hemp from the definition of marijuana, and
the federal government has declined to appeal that
decision.;
c) The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 (21 U.S.C. Section
812(b)) specifies the findings to which the government must
attest in order to classify a substance as a Schedule I
Drug and those findings include that the substance has a
high potential for abuse, has no accepted medical use, and
has a lack of accepted safety for use, none of which apply
_ AB 1147
_ Page 5
to industrial hemp;
d) According to a study commissioned by the Hemp Industries
Association, sales of industrial hemp products have grown
steadily since 1990 to more than $250 million in 2005,
increasing at a rate of approximately $26 million per year;
and,
e) California manufacturers of hemp products currently
import from around the world tens of thousands of acres
worth of hemp seed, oil, and fiber products that could be
produced by California farmers at a more competitive price
and intermediate processing of hemp seed, oil, and fiber
could create jobs in close proximity to the fields of
cultivation.
_ FISCAL EFFECT _ : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
_ COMMENTS _ : According to the author, "While hemp fiber, oil and
non-viable seed are used by many sectors of the economy for a
variety of purposes, the Federal Government restricts the
growing of hemp and the sale of viable hemp seed."
"In 1937, the United States Government mistakenly categorized
hemp with marijuana due to their physical similarities and the
fact that hemp contains THC (although hemp contains only a
negligible amount of the chemical). Hemp has so little THC that
it physically cannot be used as an intoxicant and is 100% safe
for the consumer. Because hemp has no psychoactive properties,
the Federal Government has allowed hemp products of every kind
to be manufactured and sold in the United States. Californians
can buy hemp clothing and food products in stores throughout the
state, but state law is silent on the legality of growing hemp
in California for in-state commerce."
Please see the policy committee analysis for full discussion of
this bill.
_
Analysis Prepared by _ : Kimberly Horiuchi / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744
_ AB 1147
_ Page 6
FN: 0015953
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