O F F I C E O F L E G I S L A T I V E R E S E A R C H
P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
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PA 24-115—sHB 5235
General Law Committee
AN ACT CONCERNING TH E DEPARTMENT OF CONS UMER
PROTECTION'S RECOMMENDATIONS RE GARDING CANNABIS
REGULATION
SUMMARY: This act effectively prohibits “synthetic cannabinoids” by requiring
the Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) to classify them as a schedule I
controlled substance (i.e., a drug with no current accepted medical use and a high
potential for abuse) and removing it from the statutory definition of “cannabis” and
“marijuana.” The act also redefines synthetic cannabinoids and prohibits cannabis
establishments from selling them. Under the act, synthetic cannabinoids are
prohibited in cannabis.
The act also redefines (1) “cannabis,” “marijuana,” and “cannabis-type
substances” by removing the plant’s seeds from prior law’s definition and (2)
“manufactured cannabinoids” by specifying the process by which they are created
rather than defining them based on their natural structure or effect.
The act additionally makes the following unrelated changes, it:
1. expands the types of entities to which a cultivator may sell, transfer, or
transport its cannabis;
2. allows edible cannabis products to be packaged for multiple servings in a
specific way;
3. requires cannabis labeling and packaging information to comply with
labeling requirements under both state and federal law, rather than either;
4. specifies that “financial interest” is what existing law prohibits certain
government individuals with oversight over cannabis from having; and
5. specifies that state hemp laws do not prohibit hemp that is lawfully
produced under federal law from being shipped or transported through the
state.
Lastly, the act makes various minor, technical, and conforming changes.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage, except the medical marijuana technical
changes (§ 3) are effective October 1, 2024.
§ 1 — CANNABIS, MARIJUANA, AND CANNABIS-TYPE SUBSTANCES
The act narrows the statutory definition of “cannabis” and “marijuana” by
removing from the definition (1) the seeds and (2) synthetic cannabinoids,
including the prior exemption of certain synthetic cannabinoids. Under existing
law, the terms “cannabis” and “marijuana” have the same meaning.
The act also makes conforming changes to the definition of “cannabis-type
substances” by correspondingly deleting references to seeds.
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§§ 1-2 & 6 — SYNTHETIC CANNABINO IDS
In addition to removing synthetic cannabinoids from the cannabis and
marijuana definition, the act redefines this term by specifically excluding
manufactured cannabinoids (see below) and making other minor technical changes.
It also requires the DCP commissioner to designate synthetic cannabinoids as a
schedule I drug under the state Controlled Substances Act’s regulations, which
subjects them to all state laws on controlled substances.
The act explicitly prohibits (1) synthetic cannabinoids in cannabis and (2)
cannabis establishments from selling them. Existing law already prohibits
manufacturer hemp products (i.e., generally those intended for human ingestion,
inhalation, absorption, or other internal consumption) containing synthetic
cannabinoids from being offered for sale in Connecticut or to a Connecticut
consumer (CGS § 22-61m(v)).
The act redefines “synthetic cannabinoid” to mean any substance converted by
a chemical process to create a cannabinoid or cannabinoid-like substance that has
(1) structural features that allow interaction with at least one of the known
cannabinoid-specific receptors or (2) any physiological or psychotropic response
on at least one cannabinoid-specific receptor. It includes hexahydrocannabinol
(HHC and HXC) and hydrox4phc (PHC), but does not include manufactured
cannabinoids (see below).
Under prior law, “synthetic cannabinoid” meant any material, compound,
mixture, or preparation containing any quantity of a substance having a
psychotropic response primarily by agonist activity at cannabinoid-specific
receptors affecting the central nervous system that was produced artificially and not
derived from an organic source that naturally contains cannabinoids, unless listed
in another controlled substance schedule.
§ 1 — MANUFACTURED C ANNABINOIDS
The act redefines “manufactured cannabinoids” to specify how they are created
rather than basing the definition on their natural structure or the effect they have.
Under the act, these are cannabinoids created by directly converting one
cannabinoid to a different cannabinoid through (1) the application of light or heat,
(2) decarboxylation of naturally occurring acidic forms of cannabinoids, or (3) an
alternate extraction or conversion process that DCP approves and publishes on its
website.
Under prior law, manufactured cannabinoids were cannabinoids naturally
occurring from a source other than marijuana that were similar in chemical structure
or physiological effect to marijuana-derived cannabinoids, but derived by a
chemical or biological process.
§ 4 — CULTIVATORS
The act expands the entities to which a cultivator may sell, transfer, or transport
its cannabis by allowing a cultivator to do so to all cannabis establishments, rather O L R P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
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than just to dispensary facilities, hybrid retailers, retailers, food and beverage
manufacturers, product manufacturers, and product packagers, as under prior law.
By law, a “cannabis establishment” is a producer, dispensary facility, cultivator,
micro-cultivator, retailer, hybrid retailer (one licensed to sell both recreational
cannabis and medical marijuana), food and beverage manufacturer, product
manufacturer or packager, delivery service, or transporter.
Under existing law, unchanged by the act, a cultivator may also sell, transfer,
or transport its cannabis to cannabis testing laboratories and research programs.
§ 5 — EDIBLE CANNABIS PACKAGING & CANNABIS LABELING
Existing law requires the DCP commissioner to adopt various cannabis-related
regulations, including those on specified packaging and labeling requirements.
Under prior law, these regulations had to require edible cannabis products to be
individually wrapped. Under the act, the regulations must instead allow these
products to be packaged for multiple servings if each single standardized serving is
easily discernable and is individually wrapped or physically demarked and
delineated.
Additionally, under the act, these regulations must require all information
needed to comply with labeling requirements imposed under both state and federal
law, rather than either, as under prior law. (Existing law specifies certain applicable
state and federal labeling laws that must be complied with.)
§ 7 — SOCIAL EQUITY COUNCIL PROHIBITED FINANCIAL INTERESTS
Under prior law, Social Equity Council members and employees and certain
DCP employees with cannabis oversight could not, among other things, have any
interest in cannabis purchases or sales made by authorized individuals.
The act (1) specifies that it is any “financial interest” that is prohibited and (2)
limits the prohibition to purchases or sales made by licensed cannabis
establishments rather than by all individuals.
§ 8 — TRANSPORTING HEMP T HROUGH THE STATE
The act specifies that nothing in the state hemp laws should be construed to
prohibit any hemp shipment or transportation through the state if the hemp was
lawfully produced under federal law.
Federal law explicitly prohibits states from prohibiting hemp or hemp products
produced in keeping with federal law from being shipped or transported through
the state (P.L. 115-334, § 10114(b)).
BACKGROUND
Related Act
PA 24-76, has substantially similar provisions redefining certain terms, O L R P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
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allowing multiple-serving edibles, and allowing the transport of lawfully produced
hemp through the state.