An Iowa ban on synthetically produced intoxicating hemp compounds has been upheld in court after a federal judge said the plaintiffs failed to prove a new state law violates the U.S. Constitution.
The legal challenge was brought by two groups of companies who sought an injunction to block the law, which took effect July 17.
In addition to banning the sale of synthetic psychoactive hemp products, the law also makes illegal the sale of all consumable hemp – including CBD – to minors.
The law also prohibits the sale of dried hemp flowers intended to be smoked or otherwise inhaled, and bans alcoholic beverages that contain THC “including any isomers, derivatives, or analogs of THC, whether naturally occurring or synthesized.”
Language ‘sufficiently clear’
The rulings, by Judge Stephanie Rose of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, covered separate lawsuits filed by THC beverage makers Climbing Kites and Field Day Brewing, and another by a group of hemp manufacturers and retailers.
Rose also rejected the plaintiffs’ claim that the law allows the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to arbitrarily enforce new standards and reject some products that should be permitted under the law. The judge ruled that even if the law is improperly applied, that doesn’t mean it is unconstitutionally vague.
“The crux of the issue is not whether the law can be arbitrarily enforced, but whether the language is sufficiently clear so as not to invite arbitrary enforcement,” Rose wrote in her ruling.
Iowa HHS finalized rules under the law this month, defining some terms the companies had said were too vague to be enforced.
Deadline upheld
While the hemp businesses had also argued that the six-week time window for complying with the law was too short, the judge said that argument was based on the companies’ self-interest – “essentially a claim of what would be better for their businesses” – and left the compliance deadline in place.
The new law restricts the sale and use of naturally derived non-psychoactive CBD to those 21 years of age and older and limits consumable hemp products to less than 4 milligrams of THC per serving and 10 milligrams per package.
It also creates civil and criminal penalties for businesses that sell consumable hemp without first registering with the state, allows the state Health and Human Services Department to confiscate non-compliant products from retailers, and forces retailers to attach warning labels to consumable hemp products.
States across the USA are working to reign in the intoxicating hemp products, with some banning them altogether and others imposing strict rules. Officials in some states have come out strongly against products that contain the intoxicating hemp substances because they are being marketed in packaging that mimics leading brands of treats that are popular among children.