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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6500
January Session, 2021
LCO No. 3398
Referred to Committee on ENVIRONMENT
Introduced by:
(ENV)
AN ACT CONCERNING SU PPLEMENTAL REVISIONS TO THE
STATE'S HEMP PROGRAM STATUTE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 22-61l of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 2
(a) For the purpose of this section and section 22-61m, the following 3
terms have the same meaning as provided in 7 CFR 990.1, as amended 4
from time to time: "Acceptable hemp THC level", "Agricultural 5
marketing service", "Audit", "Cannabis", "Conviction", "Corrective 6
action plan", "Culpable mental state greater than negligence", 7
"Decarboxylated", "Decarboxylation", "Disposal", "Dry weight basis", 8
"Gas chromatography", "Geospatial location", "Handle", ["High-9
performance liquid] "Liquid chromatography", "Immature plants", 10
"Information sharing system", "Measurement of uncertainty", 11
"Negligence", "Phytocannabinoid", "Postdecarboxylation" , 12
"Remediation", [and] "Reverse distributor" and "Total THC". In 13
addition, for the purpose of this section and section 22-61m: 14
(1) "Cannabidiol" or "CBD" means the nonpsychotropic compound by 15 Raised Bill No. 6500
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the same name; 16
(2) "Certificate of analysis" means a certificate from a laboratory 17
describing the results of the laboratory's testing of a sample; 18
(3) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Agriculture, or the 19
commissioner's designated agent; 20
(4) "Cultivate" means to plant, grow, harvest, handle and store a plant 21
or crop; 22
(5) "Federal act" means the United States Agricultural Marketing Act 23
of 1946, 7 USC 1639o et seq., as amended from time to time; 24
(6) "Department" means the Department of Agriculture; 25
(7) "Hemp" has the same meaning as provided in the federal act; 26
(8) "Hemp products" means all manufacturer hemp products and 27
producer hemp products; 28
(9) "Independent testing laboratory" means a facility: 29
(A) For which no person who has any direct or indirect financial or 30
managerial interest in the laboratory and also has any direct or indirect 31
interest in a facility that: 32
(i) Produces, distributes, manufactures or sells hemp or hemp 33
products, or marijuana in any state or territory of the United States; or 34
(ii) Cultivates, processes, distributes, dispenses or sells marijuana; 35
and 36
(B) That is accredited as a laboratory in compliance with section 21a-37
408-59 of the regulations of Connecticut state agencies; 38
(10) "Laboratory" means a laboratory that meets the requirements of 39
7 CFR 990.3 and that is accredited as a testing laboratory to International 40
Organization for Standardization (ISO) 17025 by a third-party 41 Raised Bill No. 6500
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accrediting body such as the American Association for Laboratory 42
Accreditation or the Assured Calibration and Laboratory Accreditation 43
Select Services; 44
(11) "Law enforcement agency" means the Connecticut State Police, 45
the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the Department of 46
Agriculture, the Department of Consumer Protection Drug Control 47
Division or any other federal, state or local law enforcement agency or 48
drug suppression unit; 49
(12) "Licensee" means an individual or entity that possesses a license 50
to produce or manufacture hemp or hemp products in this state; 51
(13) "Manufacture" means the conversion of the hemp plant into a by-52
product by means of adding heat, solvents or any method of extraction 53
that modifies the original composition of the plant for the purpose of 54
creating a manufacturer hemp product for commercial or research 55
purposes; 56
(14) "Manufacturer" means a person in the state licensed by the 57
Commissioner of Consumer Protection to manufacture, handle, store 58
and market manufacturer hemp products pursuant to the provisions of 59
section 22-61m and any regulation adopted pursuant to section 22-61m; 60
(15) "Marijuana" has the same meaning as provided in section 21a-61
240; 62
(16) "Market" or "marketing" means promoting, distributing or 63
selling a hemp product within the state, in another state or outside of 64
the United States and includes efforts to advertise and gather 65
information about the needs or preferences of potential consumers or 66
suppliers; 67
(17) "On-site manager" means the individual designated by the 68
producer license applicant or producer responsible for on-site 69
management and operations of a licensed producer; 70
(18) "Pesticide" has the same meaning as "pesticide chemical" as 71 Raised Bill No. 6500
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provided in section 21a-92; 72
(19) "Lot" means a contiguous area in a field, greenhouse or indoor 73
growing structure containing the same variety or strain of hemp 74
throughout the area; 75
(20) "Post-harvest sample" means a representative sample of the form 76
of hemp taken from the harvested hemp from a particular lot's harvest 77
that is collected in accordance with the procedures established by the 78
commissioner; 79
(21) "Pre-harvest sample" means a composite, representative portion 80
from plants in a hemp lot, that is collected in accordance with the 81
procedures established by the commissioner; 82
(22) "Produce" means to cultivate hemp or create any producer hemp 83
product; 84
(23) "State plan" means a state plan, as described in the federal act and 85
as authorized pursuant to this section; 86
(24) "THC" means delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol; 87
(25) "Controlled Substances Act" or "CSA" means the Controlled 88
Substances Act as codified in 21 USC 801 et seq.; 89
(26) "Criminal history report" means [the Federal Bureau of 90
Investigation's Identity History Summary] the fingerprint-based state 91
and national criminal history record information obtained in accordance 92
with section 29-17a; 93
(27) "Drug Enforcement Administration" or "DEA" means the United 94
States Drug Enforcement Administration; 95
(28) "Farm service agency" or "FSA" means an agency of the United 96
States Department of Agriculture; 97
(29) "Key participant" means a sole proprietor, a partner in 98
partnership or a person with executive managerial control in an entity, 99 Raised Bill No. 6500
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including persons such as a chief executive officer, chief operating 100
officer and chief financial officer; 101
(30) "Manufacturer hemp product" means a commodity 102
manufactured from the hemp plant, for commercial or research 103
purposes, that is intended for human ingestion, inhalation, absorption 104
or other internal consumption, that contains a THC concentration of not 105
more than 0.3 per cent on a dry weight basis or per volume or weight of 106
such manufacturer hemp product; 107
(31) "Producer" means an individual or entity licensed by the 108
commissioner to produce and market producer hemp products 109
pursuant to the federal act, the state plan, the provisions of this section 110
and the regulations adopted pursuant to this section; 111
(32) "Producer hemp product" means any of the following produced 112
in this state: Raw hemp product, fiber-based hemp product or animal 113
hemp food product, and each of which contains a THC concentration of 114
not more than 0.3 per cent on a dry weight basis or per volume or weight 115
of such producer hemp product; 116
(33) "USDA" means the United States Department of Agriculture; 117
(34) "Entity" means a corporation, joint stock company, association, 118
limited partnership, limited liability partnership, limited liability 119
company, irrevocable trust, estate, charitable organization or other 120
similar organization, including any such organization participating in 121
the hemp production as a partner in a general partnership, a participant 122
in a joint venture or a participant in a similar organization; and 123
(35) "Homogenize" means to blend hemp into a mixture that has a 124
uniform quality and content throughout such mixture. 125
(b) The Commissioner of Agriculture shall establish and operate an 126
agricultural pilot program, as defined in 7 USC 5940, as amended from 127
time to time, for hemp research to enable the department, and its 128
licensees, to study methods of producing and marketing hemp. All 129 Raised Bill No. 6500
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producer licensees licensed pursuant to this section shall be participants 130
in the state agricultural pilot program for hemp research. Until such 131
time as said commissioner adopts regulations, in accordance with the 132
provisions of chapter 54, the Department of Agriculture shall utilize 133
procedures and guidance policies that the commissioner deems to be 134
consistent with the provisions of 7 USC 5940, as amended from time to 135
time, provided such procedures and guidance policies shall, at a 136
minimum, require: (1) The commissioner to certify and register any site 137
used to grow hemp, (2) any person who produces hemp to produce 138
plants that meet the definition of hemp and verify such, (3) the 139
maintenance of records by any person who grows hemp and the 140
availability of inspection of such records by the commissioner, and (4) 141
verification of compliance with the definition of hemp by a laboratory, 142
at the expense of any licensee. The provisions of this section shall take 143
precedence over any such procedure or guidance policy. Participants in 144
the state agricultural pilot program for hemp research shall be licensed 145
in accordance with the provisions of this section. Such pilot program 146
shall operate until the earlier of the date of a fully approved state plan 147
under the federal act, as described in this section, or the date of repeal 148
of the federal law permitting the state's agricultural pilot program for 149
hemp research. 150
(c) (1) The commissioner shall prepare a state plan in accordance with 151
the federal act and 7 CFR 990.3, for approval by the Governor, in 152
consultation with the office of the Chief State's Attorney and the 153
Attorney General. The state plan, once approved by the Governor and 154
the Attorney General, shall be submitted by the commissioner to the 155
United States Secretary of Agriculture for his or her approval. The 156
commissioner shall have the authority to amend the state plan, in 157
consultation with the Governor, the Attorney General and the office of 158
the Chief State's Attorney, as necessary to comply with the federal act. 159
(2) The commissioner shall operate the state plan, which shall 160
include, at a minimum, the following requirements: 161
(A) The sampling of hemp shall comply, at a minimum, with 7 CFR 162 Raised Bill No. 6500
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[990.3(a)(2)] 990.3 and be performed by [the commissioner, the 163
commissioner's designated agents, or] an authorized sampling agent; 164
(B) The testing of hemp shall comply, at a minimum, with 7 CFR 165
[990.3(a)(3)] 990.3; 166
(C) The control, remediation and disposal of noncompliant cannabis 167
plants shall comply with 7 CFR 990.27 and 7 CFR 990.3; 168
(D) The department shall comply with all recordkeeping and 169
reporting requirements in the federal act, and 7 CFR 990.1 to 7 CFR 170
990.71, inclusive; 171
(E) The department shall comply with enforcement procedures in 7 172
CFR 990.6; 173
(F) The department shall conduct annual inspections of, at a 174
minimum, a random sample of producers to verify that hemp is not 175
produced in violation of the federal act, the state plan and the provisions 176
of this section, and shall enforce any violation as provided for in the 177
federal act and as defined in 7 CFR 990.6; 178
(G) Producers shall report their required license, lot and hemp crop 179
acreage information to FSA, in accordance with the requirements in 7 180
CFR 990.7; and 181
(H) Producers shall report to the commissioner the total acreage of 182
hemp planted, harvested and, if applicable, disposed of or remediated, 183
and such other information as the commissioner may require. 184
(3) All sampling and testing of hemp shall be done using protocols 185
that are at least as statistically valid as the USDA's published protocols 186
for sampling and testing of hemp, which protocols shall be posted on 187
the department's Internet web site. During a scheduled sample 188
collection, the producer, or an authorized representative of the 189
producer, shall be present at the lot. A producer shall not harvest the 190
cannabis crop prior to the taking of samples. Samples of hemp plant 191
material from one lot shall not be commingled with hemp plant material 192 Raised Bill No. 6500
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from other lots. Lots tested and not certified by a laboratory at or below 193
the acceptable hemp THC level shall be handled, remediated and 194
disposed of in accordance with the federal act, the provisions of this 195
section and the state plan, as applicable. 196
(4) The commissioner shall collect, maintain and provide to the 197
USDA, on a timely basis, and not less than once per month, license status 198
of each hemp producer, contact information for each hemp producer 199
licensed in the state, including lot legal descriptions and locations, and 200
any changes to such information. The commissioner shall also report to 201
the USDA, on a timely basis, and not less than once per month, all 202
required hemp test results and disposal information for all 203
nonconforming hemp plants and plant material. Such information shall 204
not include state and federal fingerprint-based records pursuant to 205
section 29-17a. 206
(d) The commissioner shall have the authority to enforce the federal 207
act, as amended from time to time, the state plan, this section and any 208
regulations adopted in accordance with the federal act and chapter 54 209
for hemp production in the state. The commissioner shall have the 210
authority to enforce the applicable standards for producer hemp 211
products. The commissioner may consult, collaborate and enter into 212
cooperative agreements with any federal or state agency, municipality 213
or political subdivision of the state concerning application of the 214
provisions of the federal act and the regulations adopted pursuant to the 215
federal act, as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this 216
section. 217
(e) Any person who produces hemp shall: (1) Be licensed by the 218
commissioner; (2) comply with the federal act, the state plan, the 219
provisions of this section and any regulation adopted pursuant to this 220
section; and (3) transport hemp and hemp samples in a manner and with 221
such documentation as required by the commissioner. 222
(f) Any person who sells hemp products shall not be required to be 223
licensed provided such person only engages in: (1) The retail or 224 Raised Bill No. 6500
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wholesale sale of hemp or hemp products in which no further 225
producing or manufacturing of the hemp products occurs and the hemp 226
products are acquired from a person authorized under the laws of this 227
state or another state, territory or possession of the United States or 228
another sovereign entity to possess and sell such hemp products; (2) the 229
acquisition of hemp or hemp products for the sole purpose of product 230
distribution for resale; or (3) the retail sale of hemp products that are 231
otherwise authorized under federal or state law. 232
(g) Any applicant for a license pursuant to this section shall meet each 233
of the following requirements, as applicable: 234
(1) Each applicant, whether an individual or an entity, shall submit 235
an application for a license that consists, at a minimum, of the following: 236
(A) The name, telephone number, electronic mail address, business 237
address and address of any individual who is the applicant, the full 238
name of any entity that is the applicant, including any applicable 239
principal business location and the full name, title and electronic mail 240
address of each key participant; (B) the name and address of each lot for 241
the hemp cultivation or producing location; (C) the geospatial location 242
of each lot by means of global positioning system coordinates and legal 243
description of each lot used for the hemp cultivation; (D) the acreage 244
size of each lot where the hemp will be cultivated; (E) written consent 245
allowing the commissioner to conduct both scheduled and random 246
inspections of and around the premises on which the hemp is to be 247
cultivated, harvested, stored and produced; and (F) any other 248
information as may be required by the commissioner; 249
(2) Each individual who is an applicant and each key participant of 250
any entity applying for a producer license, or renewal thereof, shall 251
submit to state and national fingerprint-based criminal history records 252
checks conducted in accordance with section 29-17a, at his or her own 253
expense; [. For the period commencing on the effective date of this 254
section and ending on December 31, 2021, the results of any such 255
criminal history records checks shall be provided by such applicants 256
and key participants to the commissioner for review;] 257 Raised Bill No. 6500
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(3) No individual, including any key participant of any entity, who 258
has been convicted of any state or federal felony, [as prescribed in the 259
federal act] related to a controlled substance, shall be eligible to obtain 260
or hold a producer license for ten years from the date of the conviction, 261
provided such restriction shall not apply to any individual who lawfully 262
grew hemp with a license, registration or authorization under any state 263
pilot program authorized by section 7606 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 264
before December 20, 2018. Any individual or entity that materially 265
falsifies any information in an application pursuant to this section shall 266
be ineligible to obtain a producer license; and 267
(4) Each individual or entity who is required by this section to obtain 268
a producer license shall pay for all costs of sampling, testing, retesting 269
and resampling any samples at a laboratory for the purpose of 270
determining the THC concentration level of any cannabis under their 271
control, or in their possession. Each individual or entity who is required 272
by this section to obtain a producer license shall pay for all costs of 273
disposal of all noncompliant cannabis plants under their control, or in 274
their possession. 275
(h) Any producer license issued by the commissioner shall expire on 276
the third following December thirty-first and may be renewed during 277
the preceding month of October. Such licenses shall not be transferable. 278
(i) The following fees shall apply for each producer license and 279
inspection: 280
(1) A nonrefundable license application fee of fifty dollars, provided 281
any constituent unit of higher education, state agency or department 282
shall be exempt from such application fee if such production is for 283
research purposes; 284
(2) A nonrefundable triennial producer license fee of four hundred 285
fifty dollars for up to one acre of planned hemp plantings and thirty 286
dollars per each additional acre of planned hemp plantings rounded to 287
the nearest acre, except no license fee charged shall exceed three 288
thousand dollars, provided any constituent unit of higher education, 289 Raised Bill No. 6500
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state agency or department shall be exempt from such license fee if such 290
production is for research purposes; and 291
(3) In the event that resampling by the commissioner is required due 292
to a test result that shows a violation of any provision of this section or 293
any regulation adopted pursuant to this section, the licensee shall pay 294
an inspection fee of fifty dollars. Such fee shall be paid prior to the 295
inspection and collection of the sample to be used for resampling. 296
(j) After receipt and review of an application for producer licensure, 297
the commissioner may grant a triennial license upon a finding that the 298
applicant meets the applicable requirements. Each producer licensee 299
shall notify the commissioner of any changes to their application 300
information, not later than fifteen days after such change. While the 301
pilot program is in effect, the commissioner may grant a conditional 302
approval of a producer license, pending receipt of the criminal history 303
records check required by this section. The commissioner shall assign 304
each producer with a license or authorization identifier in a format 305
consistent with 7 CFR [990.3(a)(9)] 990.3. 306
(k) Whenever an inspection or investigation conducted by the 307
commissioner pursuant to this title reveals any violation of the state 308
plan, this section or any regulation adopted thereunder, the producer 309
license applicant or respondent, as applicable, shall be notified, in 310
writing, of such violation and any corrective action to be taken and the 311
time period within which such corrective action shall be taken. Any such 312
producer license applicant or respondent may request a hearing, 313
conducted in accordance with chapter 54, on any such notification. Any 314
notification issued pursuant to this section shall be made by certified 315
mail, return receipt requested to the producer license applicant or 316
respondent's last known address, by in-hand service by the 317
commissioner or designated agent of the commissioner, electronic mail 318
service with the consent of the recipient, or by service in accordance 319
with chapter 896. The commissioner shall report all producer violations 320
made with a culpable mental state greater than negligence to the United 321
States Attorney General and the State's Attorney for the judicial district 322 Raised Bill No. 6500
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in which the producer violation occurred. 323
(l) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the 324
commissioner's authority to issue a cease and desist order pursuant to 325
section 22-4d, or an emergency order, in order to respond to a condition 326
that may present a public health hazard, or issue orders necessary to 327
effectuate the purposes of this section, including, but not limited to, 328
orders for the embargo, partial destruction, destruction and release of 329
hemp or hemp products. Any cease and desist order or an emergency 330
order shall become effective upon service of such order by the 331
commissioner. Following service of any such order, subsequent 332
proceedings shall proceed in accordance with the provisions of section 333
22-4d and the rules of practice for such agency. Any embargo, partial 334
destruction, destruction or release order issued pursuant to this section 335
shall be served by certified mail, return receipt requested to the 336
respondent's last known address, by in-hand service by the 337
commissioner or designated agent of the commissioner, or by service in 338
accordance with chapter 896. 339
(m) Following a hearing conducted in accordance with chapter 54, 340
the commissioner may impose an administrative civil penalty, not to 341
exceed two thousand five hundred dollars per violation, and suspend, 342
revoke or place conditions upon any producer licensee who violates the 343
provisions of this section or any regulation adopted pursuant to this 344
section. 345
(n) (1) Any individual who produces hemp in this state without 346
obtaining a license pursuant to this section, or who produces hemp in 347
this state after having a license suspended or revoked shall have 348
committed an infraction. 349
(2) Any entity that produces hemp in this state without obtaining a 350
license pursuant to this section, produces hemp in violation of this 351
section or produces hemp in this state after having a license suspended 352
or revoked may be fined not more than two thousand five hundred 353
dollars per violation, after a hearing conducted in accordance with 354 Raised Bill No. 6500
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chapter 54. 355
(o) (1) Any negligent violation, as described in the federal act, of this 356
section or the state plan shall be subject to enforcement in accordance 357
with the federal act, and the state plan for negligent violations. 358
(2) For any negligent violation, a producer shall be required to correct 359
such negligent violation, by means of a corrective action plan approved 360
by the commissioner. Each corrective action plan shall include, at a 361
minimum, a reasonable completion deadline for correction of the 362
negligent violation, periodic reporting to the commissioner for at least 363
two years and compliance with the state plan. 364
(3) Any producer that negligently violates the state plan shall not, as 365
a result of such negligent violation, be referred by the commissioner for 366
any criminal enforcement action by the federal, state or local 367
government. 368
(4) Any producer that negligently violates the state plan three times 369
during any five-year period shall be ineligible to produce hemp for a 370
period of five years beginning on the date of the third violation. 371
(5) The commissioner shall conduct an inspection to determine if the 372
corrective action plan for a producer who commits any such negligent 373
violation was properly implemented. 374
(p) Any person aggrieved by an order issued pursuant to this section 375
may appeal to the commissioner in accordance with the provisions of 376
chapter 54. Such appeal shall be made in writing to the commissioner 377
and received not later than fifteen days after the date of the order. If no 378
appeal is made pursuant to this subsection the order shall be final. 379
(q) (1) All documents submitted under this section shall be subject to 380
disclosure in accordance with chapter 14, except: (A) Information 381
depicting or describing (i) the test results of any producer, (ii) the 382
location of any hemp growing, harvesting, processing or storage 383
location, or (iii) hemp producer location security schematics; and (B) the 384 Raised Bill No. 6500
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results of any criminal history records check. 385
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (1) of this 386
subsection, all documents and records submitted or maintained 387
pursuant to this section shall be disclosed to any law enforcement 388
agency upon request of such law enforcement agency. 389
(r) The commissioner may inspect and shall have access to the 390
buildings, equipment, supplies, vehicles, records, real property and 391
other information that the commissioner deems necessary to carry out 392
the commissioner's duties pursuant to this section from any person 393
participating in producing, handling, storing marketing or researching 394
hemp. 395
(s) Nothing in this section shall be construed to apply to any licensee 396
of palliative marijuana authorized pursuant to chapter 420f. 397
(t) All licensees pursuant to this section shall maintain records 398
required by the federal act, the state plan, this section and any regulation 399
adopted pursuant to this section. Each licensee shall make such records 400
available to the department immediately upon request of the 401
commissioner and in electronic format, if available. 402
(u) The commissioner may adopt regulations, in accordance with the 403
provisions of chapter 54, to implement the provisions of this section 404
including, but not limited to, the labeling of producer hemp products. 405
(v) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes: (1) 406
Marijuana does not include hemp or hemp products; (2) THC that does 407
not exceed 0.3 per cent by dry weight and that is found in hemp shall 408
not be considered to be THC that constitutes a controlled substance; (3) 409
hemp-derived cannabidiols, including CBD, shall not constitute 410
controlled substances or adulterants solely on the basis of containing 411
CBD; and (4) hemp products that contain one or more hemp-derived 412
cannabidiols, such as CBD, intended for ingestion shall be considered 413
foods, not controlled substances or adulterated products solely on the 414
basis of the containing hemp-derived cannabidiols. 415 Raised Bill No. 6500
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(w) Whenever the commissioner believes or has reasonable cause to 416
believe that the actions of a licensee or any employee of a producer 417
licensee are in violation of the federal act, the state plan, or any state law 418
concerning the growing, cultivation, handling, transporting or 419
possession of marijuana, the commissioner shall notify the Department 420
of Emergency Services and Public Protection and the State Police. 421
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage 22-61l
Statement of Purpose:
To make additional revisions to the state's hemp program statute, as
required by the federal government.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]