Adult use cannabis is illegal in Pennsylvania. But anyone can go to their local gas station and grab a package of delta 8 gummies or “Do-weed-o’s”— so long as the products are marketed as hemp.

A state senate hearing this week raised concerns about the hemp industry in Pennsylvania.

Hemp was legalized in the 2018 Farm Bill. Lawmakers, recognizing that the cannabis plant had other uses than getting people high, made a legal distinction: if a cannabis plant has less than .3% THC, its hemp. If it has more, it’s marijuana and still a schedule I drug.

THC is the chemical that intoxicates people.

The goal was to let hemp farmers get back into fabric and construction production, and make space for the medicinal potential of cannabis (like CBD products).

However, that .3% threshold for THC meant the hemp industry could legally distribute products that make people high. For example, Delta 8 products that are made from hemp are legal. Delta 8 products made from marijuana plants are illegal.

So while the hemp industry is incredibly wide and versatile— the regulations to respond to its evolution are not there. 

For example, there are no federal laws about selling hemp to minors.

Across the board— district attorneys, the medical marijuana industry, and even many in the hemp industry itself say that bad actors take advantage of loose regulations.

Friction starts rising though when these different parties start talking about how severe the solutions should be though.

The medical marijuana industry in Pennsylvania has strict rules on testing and tracking their products, labeling, dosages, and more. Alternatively…

“With hemp, you don't have to do any of that. You don't have to pay any taxes. You don't have to worry about people coming in looking at your facility,” said Chris Lindsey, a spokesperson for the American Trade Association for Cannabis & Hemp.

"You don't have anybody testing your products or comparing them to what you have on the label,” Lindsey said.

Long story short, legally, no one has to confirm if “Do-weed-o’s” is actually following the .3% threshold law.

Pennsylvania also has very few guard rails in place for hemp products. 

“We need some clarity on what is legal and what's not,” said Sen. Dan Laughlin, a Republican from Erie who is chair of the Law and Justice Committee that hosted the hearing.

“We need clarity on the packaging and labeling, because that seems to be an issue with a lot of these products as well. You're not really getting what it says on the package,” Laughlin said.

Thomas Bobrowicz, a hemp producer and shop owner in Harborcreek Pennsylvania, says there are bad actors—but there are also many in the industry who operate in good faith.

Bobrowicz wants to see age restrictions, labeling guidelines, and product testing standards. However—he says the hemp industry should not be held to medical standards.

“The way the marijuana industry is regulated currently, it's not for a small business,” Bobrowicz said. "It would be impossible for a person like me to own a marijuana business in Pennsylvania.”

For some comparisons, Bobrowicz says testing for metals and molds should be a standard for all cannabis products-- but that some of the product tracking and security protocols that medical marijuana industries use are burdensome.