Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican presidential candidate in 2024, signed a law that prohibits the sale of hemp-based products to anyone under 21. This includes cannabis chewing gum.
SB 1676, a bill from Sen. Colleen (R) Burton was signed into law and went into effect Saturday. The law also creates penalties against businesses who market hemp in an appealing way to children, and prohibits products made “in the form of humans, animals, or cartoons.”
The bill prohibits selling hemp extract to anyone under the age of 21. This includes snuff and chewing gum. The revised statute will punish a person for violating it with a second-degree misdemeanor if they commit the offense for the first time and a misdemeanor of the first degree if the offense is committed within a year.
The measure states that “Hemp products found to have been mislabeled, or to be attractive to children will be immediately halted from sale.”
The newly implemented law also imposes regulations on packaging hemp products. The law requires that containers are designed to minimize “exposure to heat” and not to appeal to children.
The bill also amends the statute so that hemp products are only allowed to be sold in facilities that have a valid and current permit issued by an entity that regulates food safety or human health. This entity must also ensure that the facility is sanitized according to the requirements set forth by the regulatory entity.
As originally introduced, the legislation would have set a THC cap for hemp products. However, this was changed in a House Committee in April after significant pressure by hemp industry representatives.
DeSantis has signed the Bill, without commenting specifically on it.
Last week, the governor signed a separate measure prohibiting sober living homes from allowing their residents to possess or to use medical marijuana. This is true even if a patient has been certified by a physician to use cannabis for therapeutic purposes in accordance with State law.
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The governor signed a bill last month that allows doctors to continue medical cannabis recommendations via telehealth, and takes steps to encourage Black farmers to participate in the state’s Medical Marijuana Program.
DeSantis’s marijuana policy statements and actions have been in the spotlight ever since he entered his race, especially after he recently said that would not decriminalize Cannabis if he were elected into the White House.
His position has earned him criticism, including from a href=”https://www.marijuanamoment.net/robert-f-kennedy-jr/takes a hit at desantis over marijuana decriminalization opposition but declines to smoke joint with bill maher/” rel=”noopener” target=”_blank>Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr/a>. Democratic Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr has criticized his position.
DeSantis talked about Florida’s medical cannabis program, which was approved by voters. He said that under this model military veterans “actually have access” to marijuana. He said that the issue was “controversial” because some people abuse marijuana and use it recreationally.
In recent weeks, several Republican presidential candidates for 2024 have addressed issues related to drug policy.
In a recent interview , for example, the former president Donald Trump appeared confused when confronted by the fact that a woman whom he had pardoned as part of his criminal justice reform initiative during his administration would have been sentenced to death under his plan.
In a CNN town-hall event held last month, the former New Jersey governor. Chris Christie (R), who said that he would “end the war on drugs” if elected. He stressed the importance of a treatment-based strategy for people suffering from addiction, while at the same maintaining that he would seek to increase the enforcement against those selling drugs.
Nebraska Activists Launch Signature Collection for 2024 Medical Marijuana Ballot Initiatives
Photo by Kimzy Nanny.
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