A New, Fast Moving NC Bill Will Wreck the State’s Booming Hemp Industry

A few months ago, I wrote that SB-265, a hemp bill in my home state of North Carolina, could serve as a national model. Why? Because it sets out a comprehensive regulatory framework based on the “Three Pillars” of oversight:

1. Restricting access by minors

2. Standardizing quality control in production and manufacturing

3. Requiring uniform labeling to ensure adult consumers can make informed choices

At the time, SB-265 appeared on track to become law. It enjoyed broad support from North Carolina’s hemp industry.

Importantly, SB-265 directly addresses the very concerns Governor Josh Stein raised in his recent Executive Order establishing a Cannabis Advisory Council. That order calls for “a comprehensive statewide approach to cannabis… grounded in public health and public safety considerations… focused on the protection and safety of North Carolinians, especially our youth.” SB-265 delivers precisely that.

Unfortunately, another bill—HB-328—just blindsided the industry. It surged through the state Senate last week and is now headed to the House. If enacted, HB-328 will devastate North Carolina’s booming hemp sector.

At a glance, HB-328 appears similar to SB-265. That’s the danger. The similarities are superficial and deceptive. Legislators who support SB-265 might mistakenly back HB-328, unaware that it would cripple the very industry they think they’re protecting.

HB-328 is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. It contains a handful of subtle—but deeply damaging—provisions designed to dismantle the state’s hemp economy under the guise of reasonable regulation.

Let’s examine the most egregious:

1. Ban on All Cannabinoids Except Delta-9 THC

Section § 18D-100(17) defines a “prohibited hemp-derived consumable product” as:

“A hemp product that is a finished good intended for human ingestion or inhalation that contains concentrations of hemp-derived cannabinoids other than delta-9 THC.”

Read that again. This clause quietly bans every hemp product that contains anything other than delta-9 THC—including CBD. That means no full-spectrum tinctures. No balanced CBD/D9 beverages. No THCa flower. No CBG. No CBN. No relief for patients or customers who depend on the therapeutic properties of these federally legal cannabinoids.

2. A Kafkaesque Licensing Trap

Sections § 18D-101A(a) and (b) state:

“A producer shall not knowingly sell or in any way transfer hemp that has been processed or prepared with the intent to be used in a hemp-derived consumable product to any person or entity other than a manufacturer licensed pursuant to this Chapter.”

“A producer shall not knowingly sell or in any way transfer hemp that has been processed or prepared with the intent to be used in a prohibited hemp-derived consumable product to any person or entity.”

Together, these sections prohibit a hemp grower from selling any processed hemp (a term the bill doesn’t define) unless:

• The buyer is a North Carolina–licensed manufacturer, and

• That manufacturer doesn’t intend to create a product containing any cannabinoid except delta-9 THC.

This not only criminalizes the sale of CBD-rich or full-spectrum hemp, it also blocks out-of-state commerce and imposes absurd burdens on in-state farmers, who must somehow divine how their buyers intend to use the raw material. It would kneecap an already struggling farming community.

3. The Hemp Flower Paradox

Section § 18D-101(a)(7) requires a certificate of analysis (COA) proving that hemp flower sold in the state contains ≤ 0.3% delta-9 THC. So far, so good.

But the very next provision, § 18D-101(a)(8), bans the sale of any “prohibited hemp-derived consumable product”—which, again, is defined as any product containing cannabinoids other than delta-9 THC.

Anyone with even a basic understanding of the hemp plant knows that it naturally contains dozens of cannabinoids. So while the bill claims to allow hemp flower sales, it actually bans them all. It’s a sleight of hand—legal hemp flower cannot comply with the bill’s impossible standard.

Conclusion: HB-328 Must Be Stopped

This bill is either profoundly ignorant or deliberately destructive. Either way, its passage would demolish North Carolina’s hemp industry, particularly our farmers—who would lose access to both in-state processors and out-of-state markets.

The North Carolina House is set to take up HB-328 this week. The time to act is now.

 Contact your state House representative and tell them to vote NO on HB-328. Urge them instead to support SB-265—the bill that actually protects minors, ensures consumer safety, and gives the hemp industry a viable regulatory path forward.

Click here to find your NC House member’s contact information.

June 21, 2025