After action by the state legislature, Indiana has one more obstacle to clear before legalizing CBD oil. Lawmakers passed the legislation on the final day of the legislative session, at 10 p.m. The House passed Senate Bill 52 unanimously, while Senators voted in favor 36-11.
SB-52 will legalize the purchase and sale of cannabidiol (CBD) in Indiana if it passes. All products sold in the state would have to be lab tested to ensure they do not exceed 0.3 percent THC.
Gov. Eric Holcomb must sign the bill for it to finally become law.
Strict Rules For Labels
But some people believe the law goes too far when it comes to product packaging. The new rules would require a special QR code on each product label. The code would then link to an online document detailing the ingredients used, and who made them.
Consequently, most companies would have to create special product labels just for Indiana. Detractors say that requirement would shut out many small firms from the state’s newly legal CBD market.
Nathan Renschler is the owner of a CBD oil manufacturing company in Fort Wayne. He sees the labeling rules as unnecessary and unfairly strict when compared to other industries.
“To have all these companies including mine have special labels for Indiana, and the rest of the country we have a different label, is pretty silly,” Renschler told local media.
“They don’t have any state regulations on any other vitamin or supplement, but this one gets special regulations and it’s not for any good reason.”
Similar To Tough Vaping Laws
Renschler also said that the law could cause problems similar to those experienced when the state regulated vaping products. Those rules allowed only one security company to approve all e-liquid manufacturers in Indiana. This resulted in only six companies making the products in the state, causing prices to skyrocket.
The FBI looked into the matter and a federal court eventually ruled that Indiana could not regulate out of state manufacturers.
Renschler believes that overreaction by legislators to cannabis legalization efforts leads to poor decisions.
“(Lawmakers) overreach when they freak out,” Renschler said. “They did it with e-liquid; now they’re doing it with CBD.”
Rep. Terri Austin, D-Anderson, also said she is afraid SB-52 could cause legal issues similar to the vaping legislation.
“What I don’t want to see is that someone takes it to court six months down the road and we end up with egg on our face because it looks like we’re not creating a level and fair playing field,” said Rep. Terri Austin, D-Anderson.
Final Hit: Indiana Has One More Obstacle To Clear Before Legalizing CBD Oil
Some lawmakers pledged to revisit the issue so that they can change the packaging rules. Rep. Matt Pierce, a Democrat from Bloomington, told the press that the bill is better than nothing.
“We’re going to have to come back and fix this next year, but we’ve got to at least get it legal,” said Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington.
If Gov. Holcomb signs SB-52, it will go into effect in July. That will allow companies to create compliant packaging and sell off existing stock.
