The United States Senate is preparing to end consideration of the Agriculture Reform, Food, and Jobs Act (S. 954) without any vote on Sen. Ron Wyden’s amendment that would eliminate the Controlled Substances Act prohibition on growing hemp. Ryan Grim at the Huffington Post presents a behind-the-scenes story of the lack of a vote on the amendment. Sen. Wyden made the following statement regarding the resolution of the amendment in this year’s farm bill:
“Ending the restrictions on industrial hemp is pro-business, pro-farmer and commonsense. As I’ve said, if you can buy it at the local supermarket, American farmers should be able to grow it. While support is growing, we have some significant challenges right now. Between the generational misconceptions about hemp within the Congress, continued opposition from the Drug Enforcement Agency, and no clear opportunity to vote on further Farm Bill amendments, the time is not yet ripe for industrial hemp. Better organized advocacy on behalf of hemp, clearly separated from advocacy for cannabis, is vital to overcoming these obstacles. As we continue to build support and look for other avenues, state agricultural commissioners, farmers and business that would benefit from this legislation need to help get the facts out there and push for Congress to pass this bill.”
