At the time of the last hemp update (MEC Newsletter, Summer 2002), AB 388Ñwhich would have authorized the study of industrial hemp and other bast fiber crops within the University of CaliforniaÑwas being considered by the state senate Agriculture and Water Resources Committee. Though it passed the committee, it was vetoed by Governor Davis on the grounds that "the Drug Enforcement Administration applies the same strict controls to industrial hemp as it does to marijuana."
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) classifies industrial hemp as a Schedule I controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970Ñthe same category as marijuana and heroin. One of the factors that distinguishes industrial hemp from marijuana is the content of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Industrial hemp contains 0.3%-1% THC, whereas marijuana contains 3-15% THC.
More and more states have passed or have proposed legislation authorizing the production of industrial hemp, yet the DEA classification is a deterrent to translating new laws into action. West Virginia is presently coping with the reality of what happens when a state does legalize industrial hemp, as West Virginia did last April. Federal regulations require hemp to be grown in a strictly secured environment, and only for research purposes. This past December, West Virginia farmers learned that they cannot grow hemp for commercial purposes, which was the chief motive for its legalizationÑto provide a viable economic alternative to less sustainable crops. In a report to a committee of West Virginia agriculture officials, Deputy Agriculture Commissioner Steve Hannah stated, "Growing industrial hemp in West Virginia is economically infeasible under current federal law that considers it illegal." This is in part due to the severe security measures required by the DEA. For example, the state of Hawaii has a one-quarter-acre test plot of hemp that is surrounded by a chain link fence with a razor wire top and a 24-hour infrared security system.
Vote Hemp, "a non-profit organization dedicated to the acceptance of and free market for industrial hemp," is in the midst of a lawsuit with the DEA as they attempt to obtain documents under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) pertaining to dialogues between the Office of Natural Drug Control Policy, the DEA, and the Justice Department about attempts to illegally impose restrictions on the hemp trade.
The Hemp Industries Association, in participation with several hemp food manufacturers, had filed a motion to stay proposed DEA regulations that would have also made hemp seeds and oil, contained in several food and cosmetic products, illegal under the Controlled Substances Act. The motion was granted, but the final decision has yet to be heard. Vote Hemp requested FOIA documents in order to build an impenetrable argument in the case that the court's verdict is decided in favor of the DEA. However, in this post-9/11 world, it is more difficult than ever to obtain information under the FOIA, as Vote Hemp recently discovered. The court decided not to waive the fees required to obtain FOIA documents, making it tremendously cost-prohibitive for the Vote Hemp legal team to acquire information pertinent to their case. The next move is to narrow the focus to significant documents needed in order to make the fees less of a deterrent, while still building a solid case.
Though the market for hemp products has grown exponentially year by year, as more consumers vote with their pocketbook and knowledge about industrial hemp is disseminated, advocacy organizations like Vote Hemp that work behind the scenes are proving invaluable. Without the actions of committed individuals who volunteer their time to work on the legal side of the hemp market, industrial hemp would have been out of the picture long ago. Visit www.votehemp.com for updates and more information, and also to make contributions to the legal fund. The Hemp Industries Association (www.the-hia.org) is also a priceless asset, working for "fair and equal treatment of industrial hemp and the instigation of a level playing field on which to compete with other natural resources and synthetics." The HIA provides a forum for businesses, non-profits, and individuals to come together as a collective force to attest to the potential of the industrial hemp market.
With the current state of our nation's affairs, as one civil liberty after the next is taken away, the legalization of industrial hemp at any time soon appears to be unlikely. The federal government is hardly the ally of its citizens; why would they act in our favor? But as in all forms of activism, we can only keep on truckin' and do what we innately know to be just, working for a positive outcome.
Copyright Mendocino Environmental Center 2003
Permission granted to excerpt or use this article if source is cited