2015 -- S 0990

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LC002850

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2015

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY - CBD-RICH HEMP ACT

     Introduced By: Senator V. Susan Sosnowski

     Date Introduced: June 11, 2015

     Referred To: Senate Judiciary

     (by request)

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Title 2 of the General Laws entitled "AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY"

is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter:

CHAPTER 26

CBD-RICH HEMP ACT

     2-26-1. Short title. -- This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "CBD-Rich

Hemp Act."

     2-26-2. Definitions. -- When used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the

following meanings:

     (1) "Cannabinoid" means a class of a diverse chemical compound that acts on

cannabinoid receptors on cells that repress neurotransmitter release in the brain.

     (2) "Cannabidiol" or "CBD" means an active cannabinoid found in the plant of the genus

Cannabis.

     (3) "CBD-rich hemp" means a sativa L strain reaching a CBD count of more than fifteen

percent (15%) CBD and less than eight-tenths (0.8) of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

     (4) "Department" means the department of health.

     (5) "Division" means the division of agriculture in the department of environmental

management.

     (6) "Hemp" means the plant of the genus cannabis and any part of such plant, whether

growing or not, with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration that does not exceed three-

tenths percent (.3%) on a dry weight basis of any part of the plant cannabis, or per volume or

weight of marijuana product, or the combined percent of delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol and

tetrahydrocannabinolic acid in any part of the plant cannabis regardless of moisture content.

     (7) "Hemp/CBD-rich hemp products" means all products made from the plants,

including, but not limited to, concentrated oil, cloth, cordage, fiber, food, fuel, paint, paper,

construction materials, plastics, seed, seed meal, seed oil, and certified seed for cultivation.

     2-26-3. Hemp/CBD-Rich Hemp; an agricultural product. – Hemp/CBD-rich hemp is

an agricultural medical product which may be grown as a crop, produced, possessed, distributed,

and commercially traded in Rhode Island pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.

     2-26-4. Authority over licensing and sales. – (a)(1) The division of agriculture in the

department of environmental management shall promulgate rules and regulations for the licensing

and regulation of hemp or CBD-rich cultivators and shall be responsible for the enforcement of

such licensing and regulation.

     (2) A person or entity who intends to cultivate hemp or CBD-rich hemp shall file for a

license to cultivate with the division of agriculture at the department of environmental

management. All applicants shall file a national criminal background check with the bureau of

criminal identification through the attorney general's office. All such applicants shall also register

as applicants with the state police. The applicant shall pay the costs of such national background

check.

     (i) Information produced by a national criminal records check pertaining to a conviction

for any felony offense under chapter 28 of title 21 ("Rhode Island controlled substances act"),

murder, manslaughter, rape, first-degree sexual assault, second-degree sexual assault, first-degree

child molestation, second-degree child molestation, kidnapping, first-degree arson, second-degree

arson, mayhem, robbery, burglary, breaking and entering, assault with a dangerous weapon,

assault or battery involving grave bodily injury, and/or assault with intent to commit any offense

punishable as a felony or a similar offense from any other jurisdiction shall result in a letter to the

applicant and the division disqualifying the applicant.

     (ii) For purposes of this section, "conviction" means, in addition to judgements of

conviction entered by a court subsequent to a finding of guilty, or a plea of guilty, those instances

where the defendant has entered a plea of nolo contendere and has received a sentence of

probation, and those instances where a defendant has entered into a deferred sentence agreement

with the attorney general.

     (3) The division shall charge a non-refundable application fee of twenty-five thousand

dollars ($25,000) for each application to obtain a cultivator's license.

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     (b) The department of health shall promulgate regulations for the sales, storage,

manufacturing, and testing of CBD-rich hemp products and plants as set forth herein. Applicants

must demonstrate that the CBD-rich hemp to be grown will be a cannabidiol-rich product with a

cannabidiol no less than fifteen percent (15%) and a THC-concentration of less than one percent

(1%) during the growing of the plant. The final product must have a THC-concentration of less

than three-tenths percent (0.3%).

     2-26-5. Rulemaking authority. -- The division and the department may adopt rules to

provide for the implementation of this chapter, which may include rules to require CBD-rich

hemp and standard hemp to be tested during growth for tetrahydrocannabinol levels and to

require inspection of CBD-rich hemp and standard hemp during sowing, growing season, harvest,

storage, and processing. The division and the department shall not adopt under this or any other

section a rule that would prohibit a person or entity to grow or distribute hemp based on the legal

status of hemp/CBD-rich hemp under federal law.

     2-26-6. Registration. -- (a) Except as provided in this section, beginning seven (7) days

after the effective date of this act, the division shall accept applications for licensure to cultivate

CBD-rich hemp and hemp.

     (b) A person or entity who intends to cultivate hemp/CBD-rich hemp shall register with

the division of agriculture as a cultivator, and shall also submit on a form provided by the

department of health an application for a license to manufacture and sell hemp/CBD-rich hemp

products. The application for a license to manufacture and sell shall contain the following:

     (1) The name and address of the person or entity;

     (2) A certificate of analysis that the seeds or plants obtained for cultivation are of a type

and variety that do not exceed the maximum concentration of delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol set

forth in this chapter;

     (3) The location of the cultivation facility and other field reference information as may be

required by the state; provided, that at a minimum, each applicant shall provide the department of

health and the division with a tracking program and security layout to indicate all agriculture

grown is tracked and monitored from seed to distribution outlets;

     (4) An explanation of the seed to sale tracking, cultivation method, extraction method,

and CBD-rich certificate of analysis/certificate of analysis for the standard hemp seeds; and

     (5) The division and the department shall review each application for the appropriate

license to determine whether the applicant meets the criteria in this chapter and qualifies for

licensure.

     (c) A person registered with the department or the division pursuant to this section shall

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allow hemp/CBD-rich hemp crops, throughout sowing, year-long growing seasons, harvest,

storage, and processing, to be inspected and tested by and at the discretion of the department or

division.

     2-26-7. CBD-rich hemp products. Methods of extraction. -- (a) No butane method of

extraction of oil shall be allowed for any hemp or CBD-rich hemp product. The only permitted

method of extraction of oil for CBD-rich hemp products shall be the C02 extraction, a/k/a

supercritical fluid extraction, as described in this section, or such methods of extraction the

national medical association deems fit for final consumption.

     (1) C02 extraction, a/k/a supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), is the process of separating

one component (the extractant) from another (the matrix) using supercritical fluids as the

extracting solvent. Extraction is usually from a solid matrix, but can also be from liquids. SFE

can be used as a sample preparation step for analytical purposes, or on a larger scale to either strip

unwanted material from a product or collect a desired product.

     2-26-8. Product testing and labeling. -- (a) The tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of

CBD-rich hemp shall be determined and tested by the department from the final product after

manufacturing and processing.

     (b) All final products must be properly tested by nationally accredited testing facilities,

which must include testing of CBD, CBD-A, CBN, THC, and THC-A. All such products shall be

properly labelled as having been tested successfully. Products must also be tested and labeled as

contaminant free.

     2-26-9. Exemption from state penalties. – (a) It is not a violation of state or local law

for a person to plant, grow, harvest, possess, process, sell, and buy CBD-rich hemp if that person

does so in compliance with this chapter and rules adopted in accordance with it.

     (b) It is not a violation of state or local law for a person to purchase and possess industrial

CBD-rich hemp or CBD-rich hemp products.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY - CBD-RICH HEMP ACT

***

     This act would allow for the growth of hemp or CBD-rich hemp as an agricultural

product subject to registration as a cultivator with the division of agriculture in the department of

environmental management. The sale or manufacture of hemp and CBD-rich hemp products

would be under the regulation of the department of health.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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