Alaska Governor Signs Bill Legalizing Hemp
Alaska Governor Bill Walker has signed into law a bill legalizing industrial hemp.
Governor Walker signed Senate Bill 6 today, which was filed by Senator Shelley Hughes. The measure was passed unanimously by both the Senate (18 to 0) and House of Representatives (36 to 0).
The new law legalizes industrial hemp by separating hemp from the definition of marijuana. This effectively removes hemp from the state’s list of controlled substances, allowing it to be grown as an agricultural commodity. Senate Bill 6 also clarifies that “cannabidiol oil is not included in the definition of “hashish oil””,and clarifies that “adding industrial hemp to food does not create an adulterated food product”.
“It was time to remove hemp from the marijuana statutes,” says Senator Hughes. “There’s no psychoactive impact from hemp. If you were to smoke acres and acres and acres of hemp, all you would get would be a sore throat and a cough.”
Hughes continues; “I just want to use Alaska hemp. It’s been frustrating for us, just because our business is entirely made up of products that we wild-craft or grow ourselves. And so the hemp seed oil, that would just change everything for us, to have it completely Alaska-grown and made herbs and plants in our products.”
The full text of Senate Bill 6 can be found by clicking here.