GOP Senator Attends Hemp Business Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, Vowing To Fight To Stop Looming Federal THC Product Ban

A GOP senator attended a ribbon cutting ceremony for a Kentucky hemp
business on Monday, where he again previewed a forthcoming bill to regulate
the crop as an alternative to its pending recriminalization under
legislation that President Donald Trump signed last month.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) spoke about hemp policy issues and his plan to avert
the new federal ban, which is set to take effect next November, at an event
marking the opening of a Cornbread Hemp location in Louisville.

When hemp’s potential federal legalization was being considered as part of
the 2018 Farm Bill that Trump signed in his first term, Paul said he
thought that’d be “great,” particularly for Kentucky farmers who’ve seen
losses as demand for tobacco has decreased. Creating a cannabis industry
would also support ancillary businesses that aren’t plant-touching, he said.

Hemp legalization has been a “great success,” Paul added, “and I don’t want
government to stifle this”

He also addressed arguments supporting the hemp ban that he described as
“untrue,” including the idea that all cannabinoid products are being sold
at gas stations and marketed in a way that targets youth. Kentucky—which
enacted a regulatory framework for hemp that aims to mitigate those
issues—is an example of how cannabis products can be responsibly sold to
adult consumers, Paul said.

I joined Cornbread Hemp at their ribbon cutting for their newest facility
in Louisville. I am fighting to stop this industry-ending ban and standing
up for our farmers. Thank you for having me, @CornbreadHemp.

— Senator Rand Paul (@SenRandPaul) December 16, 2025

“I am worried about the legislation,” the senator added, referencing the
appropriations measure that Trump signed last month with hemp ban
provisions left intact despite Paul’s efforts to remove them. “We are
working on new legislation, but I’ve got to convince my colleagues to
change their opinion.”

“I think one of the ways we may be able to get this new legislation passed
is simply not to set exact federal parameters, but to say, ‘look, if your
state already regulates hemp, why don’t we let your state make these
decisions—not the federal government. There still will be the question of
going across state lines we have to tackle. We’re in the process of
listening to people in the business, listening to the farmers and trying to
come to some conclusion that we’ve got to change their minds. We have about
a year.”

The senator—who laid partial blame for the pending hemp ban on alcohol and
marijuana interests—also made the case that text of the recently enacted
spending bill would effectively prohibit the sale of not just consumable
cannabinoid products but also plants used for “non-edible purposes” such an
clothing and building materials. That reflects the “idiocy” of the measure,
he said.

Paul pointed to Cornbread Hemp as a business that would likely be unfairly
impacted by the hemp policy change, and he said the opening of its latest
facility is “good for Louisville” to support consumers and promote job
creation.

“I think we should be open-minded to allowing adults to choose what they
would like to take for a variety of conditions. And, apparently, millions
of people think this is helpful to them–and then some simply use it as a
drink to feel some effect as maybe having a beer,” Paul said. “But I’m
proud of the companies.”

Today, Sen. @RandPaul cut the ribbon to officially open the @CornbreadHemp
retail store and public tours. pic.twitter.com/8GKVwLmd1W

— Jim Higdon (@jimhigdon) December 16, 2025

Paul has been sounding the alarm for weeks about the potential consequences
of the hemp recriminalization provisions, which he said would cause mass
job losses and a $25 billion industry to be “wiped out.”

The senator initially said he’d be imminently filing a bill to address the
issue last month, describing the legislation during a webinar organized by
the Kentucky Hemp Association. So far, the text has not been released, but
Paul said it would make it so state policy regulating hemp cannabinoid
products—with basic safeguards in place to prevent youth access, for
example—”supersedes the federal law.”

“I like the approach of doing it [this way], because it’s not a direct
repeal, and we’re [doing] an end-run around him,” Paul said. “And if a
state doesn’t have laws—and they want to have a hemp industry—they’d get
pretty busy at their state legislature and go ahead and put something in
place so they can have a hemp industry, because I don’t think you can have
one under [Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY)] law.”

Stakeholders say the new definition will devastate the market, as even
non-intoxicating CBD items typically exceed the proposed 0.4 mg THC per
container limit that is set to be enforced around this time next year.

Since a majority of his colleagues in the Senate opted to advance the
appropriations bill, however, “now I’m asking them to repeal something
they’ve already voted for,” Paul said. “But if I ask them to vote for
language that lets their state make the decision on regulation, we might
get more votes.”

Opposition to the ban crosses party lines, too. For example, Sens. Ron
Wyden (D-OR) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced a bill last week to create
a federal regulatory framework for hemp-derived cannabinoids and allow
states to set their own rules for products such as CBD. The measure is
conceptually similar to what Paul previewed about his own legislation, but
it also includes additional prescriptive regulatory controls that may
conflict with the GOP senator’s more libertarian principles.

On the other end of the debate, Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), who helped secure
the hemp re-criminalization language, said last month that he’s not
concerned about attempts to undercut the enacted law, brushing off
arguments about the possible consequences of the policy change as
“desperate mistruths from an industry that stands to lose billions of
dollars by selling intoxicants to children.”


*— Marijuana Moment is tracking hundreds of cannabis, psychedelics and drug
policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon
supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps,
charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.*


*Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on
Patreon to get access. —*

Overall, there’s been widespread outcry over the pending hemp
re-criminalization law, drawing criticism from parents of cannabis patients
, veterinarians and influencers like Joe Rogan, for example.

In response to the hemp ban, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) filed a bill that would strike
the contested provisions of the appropriations legislation. But some
stakeholders worry that approach could backfire, and they’re hoping to see
bipartisan bills introduced in he near future that would provide a robust
regulatory model for intoxicating hemp products as a viable alternative to
blanket prohibition.

Meanwhile, GOP political operative Roger Stone said last month that Trump
was effectively “forced” by Republican lawmakers to sign the spending bill with
the hemp THC ban language.

However, a White House spokesperson said prior to the bill signing that Trump
specifically supported the prohibition language.

The Democratic governor of Kentucky said last month that the hemp industry
is an “important” part of the economy that deserves to be regulated at the
state level—rather than federally prohibited, as Congress has moved to do.

Also, a leading veterans organization is warning congressional leaders that
the newly approved blanket ban on consumable hemp products could
inadvertently “slam the door shut” on critical research.

While many hemp stakeholders say the ban would effectively eradicate the
industry–even applying to nonintoxicating CBD products that people use for
medical reasons—there’s latent hope that they can strike a compromise deal
with lawmakers before the prohibition is implemented this time next year.

Lawmakers such as Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) also say that window could
provide an opportunity to advance legislation to create an alternative
regulatory model for consumable hemp products.

Since 2018, cannabis products have been considered legal hemp if they
contain less than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC on a dry weight basis.

The new legislation specifies that, within one year of enactment, the
weight will apply to total THC—including delta-8 and other isomers. It will
also include “any other cannabinoids that have similar effects (or are
marketed to have similar effects) on humans or animals as a
tetrahydrocannabinol (as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human
Services).”

The new definition of legal hemp will additionally ban “any intermediate
hemp-derived cannabinoid products which are marketed or sold as a final
product or directly to an end consumer for personal or household use” as
well as products containing cannabinoids that are synthesized or
manufactured outside of the cannabis plant or not capable of being
naturally produced by it.

Legal hemp products will be limited to a total of 0.4 milligrams per
container of total THC or any other cannabinoids with similar effects.

Within 90 days of the bill’s enactment, the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) and other agencies will need to publish list of “all cannabinoids
known to FDA to be capable of being naturally produced by a Cannabis sativa
L. plant, as reflected in peer reviewed literature,” “all
tetrahydrocannabinol class cannabinoids known to the agency to be naturally
occurring in the plant” and “all other known cannabinoids with similar
effects to, or marketed to have similar effects to, tetrahyrocannabinol
class cannabinoids.”

The language slightly differs from provisions included in legislation that
had previously advanced out of the House and Senate Appropriations panels,
which would have banned products containing any “quantifiable” amount of
THC, to be determined by the HHS secretary and secretary of agriculture.

The post GOP Senator Attends Hemp Business Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, Vowing
To Fight To Stop Looming Federal THC Product Ban appeared first on Marijuana
Moment.