Bill description: SB 1253 would legalize hemp in Idaho.

Rating: +2

Does it increase barriers to entry into the market? Examples include occupational licensure, the minimum wage, and restrictions on home businesses. Conversely, does it remove barriers to entry into the market? 

SB 1253 would make it legal to “plant, grow, cultivate, harvest, sample, test, research, process, transport, transfer, take possession of, sell, import, and export hemp in this state.” SB 1253 makes all of these activities legal by, among other things,  differentiating hemp from the definition of marijuana. Specifically, it says that hemp is any part of the plant Cannabis sativa L “with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannibinol concentration of no more than three-tenths of one percent (0.3%) on a dry weight basis.”

By dissociating the definition of hemp from marijuana, individuals are no longer subject to a registration requirement faced by hose who manufacture and distribute marijuana, a controlled substance. Under SB 1253, manufacturing or distributing hemp would be a completely different activity from manufacturing or distributing marijuana.

(+1)

Does it directly or indirectly create or increase penalties for victimless crimes or non-restorative penalties for non- violent crimes? Conversely, does it eliminate or decrease penalties for victimless crimes or non-restorative penalties for non-violent crimes? 

Since SB 1253 establishes that hemp is different than marijuana, and exempts it from the list of Schedule I controlled substances, it will no longer be a felony to manufacture or deliver hemp without registration under Section 37-2732, Idaho Code. 

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