Wisconsin hemp bill changed to appease law enforcement

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MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A bipartisan proposal designed to help Wisconsin’s fledgling hemp industry has been modified to appease law-enforcement officials.

Police testified against the proposal earlier this year because, as originally written, it would have allowed someone who had consumed a legal product made with trace amounts of THC, such as the hemp derivative CBD, to be charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

Instead, the bill as amended would put into law the current practice of allowing drivers to have a trace amount of THC in their blood, far below the level they would have to have to be considered intoxicated. Wisconsin would join six other states with similar laws.

The Senate health committee on Tuesday voted unanimously to both make the change and advance the bill to the full Senate.

The proposal is designed to align Wisconsin’s hemp program with the federal farm bill’s regulations.