Schexnayder has said in committee hearings that his 2021 bill set a percentage cap but not a milligram cap on hemp products, which has allowed purveyors to sell gummies and tinctures with high THC levels. And after his bill last year set an 8mg cap on each serving, retailers got creative with serving sizes to keep high-THC products on store shelves. Plus, the Louisiana Department of Health inadvertently allowed a host of products to be sold, though regulators are now seeking to crack down.
In addition to reducing the amount of THC allowed in each serving, his bill this year would bolster the Health Department’s role in regulating the products and further restrict serving sizes. For instance, a beverage could contain no more than one serving in a single can. Still, by allowing 5mg of THC per serving, users could still get high; the cannabis education company Leafly says 5mg of THC is when new or infrequent users start to get high. And packages would be able to have up to 20 servings in them.
Rep. Thomas Pressly, R-Shreveport, proposed an amendment to Schexnayder’s bill Wednesday to bring the THC levels down to 0.5 mg.
“There’s serious concerns about the THC level from quite a few of us on the floor,” Pressly said in an interview. “This might just be an issue where there’s a disagreement with the speaker on.”
Rep. Jack McFarland, R-Winnsboro, who leads the House Conservative Caucus, said legislators have told him they’re concerned about the amount of THC in the products allowed currently.
“What transpired yesterday is a culmination of calls from the public, constituents, law enforcement, from state agencies who are communicating they have concerns about this hemp,” he said. “I think that’s what transpired on the floor. I think he read the room.’
Meanwhile, the industry is watching closely, waiting to see whether retailers will still be allowed to sell products at all.
Blaine Jennings, owner of Virgin Hemp Farms in Lafayette, said his company has been manufacturing 8mg products that may have to be thrown out if the Legislature changes the law. He said if the milligram cap becomes too low, it’ll be “pointless” to try to continue operating.
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