CBD testing, age limits advance in General Assembly

Manufacturers will have to analyze products for THC.

Hemp products would be tested for THC before they’re sold in stores, and only people over 21 years old would be allowed to buy them under a bill the Geor- gia House passed Tuesday.

The proposal is an attempt to regulate CBD products that have spread across Georgia and the United States since a federal law legalized hemp farming and distribution in 2018.

CBD can include Delta-8 THC, which has a slightly different chemical struc- ture than traditional marijuana and gives users a rec- reational high. Marijuana remains illegal in Georgia except for patients autho- rized to consume it for medicinal purposes.

“Many of us in this body have seen the dangers of what’s out there for sale to our young people and our consumers,” said Agri- culture Chairman Robert Dickey, a Republican from

Musella. “We’re not trying to do away with the prod- ucts. We’re just trying to put some regulation because consumers do not know what they’re consuming.”

The legislation, House Bill 1127, would require manu- facturers to analyze hemp products for THC and other ingredients, with labels on hemp products showing their contents. Hemp products would also come with a sticker warning customers that products contain THC.

Under federal law, hemp products can have no more than 0.3% THC, the com- pound that gives marijuana users a high.

“If we can go to any gas station and buy this, and our kids can go to any gas station and buy this, we needed this bill yesterday,” said state Rep. Shelly Hutchinson, a Democrat from Snellville.

The House voted 165-1 to pass the bill, which now advances to the state Senate.

Separately, the Senate voted 43-5 on Tuesday to approve Senate Bill 494, which would require hemp companies and retailers to be licensed by the Georgia Department of Agriculture.