The Morning Call
As the district attorney of Berks County for the last 18 years, I have learned that keeping our communities safe requires more than just prosecuting crimes. Instead, it requires staying ahead of the threats that enable misbehavior.
One of the most urgent dangers I see today is the explosion of delta-8 THC products flooding our neighborhoods. These are not harmless goods. They are psychoactive substances, largely unregulated and far too accessible to children.
The consequences are already showing up in our schools, our homes and our emergency rooms. Our prosecutors are unceasingly cracking down on these bad actors, including arresting operators of two smoke shops right here in Reading and West Reading for selling THC edibles directly to minors.
Thanks to Congress, this loophole is now closed, a long-overdue step that puts public health ahead of industry profits. But our relief was short-lived. The industry is already pushing back, lobbying to reverse course and preserve a gray market that makes our communities less safe.
Let’s be clear about how we got here. The 2018 Farm Bill was never intended to create a backdoor intoxicating hemp market. It was designed to support American farmers and revitalize agricultural communities by legalizing industrial hemp production. It was a policy with good intent.
However, it wasn’t long before bad actors saw this as an opportunity to make money at the expense of our communities and families. Manufacturers began producing and marketing hemp products with delta-8 THC, a compound so potent that the U.S. Drug and Food Administration has not approved it for safe use in any form. Now, these products rarely reflect natural hemp, instead using synthetic versions that can be up to 30 times more potent.
What brings me the most concern from a prosecutorial standpoint is the total absence of oversight. Hemp products have been found to be littered with synthetic chemicals, pesticides and mold. They routinely exceed listed THC concentration and are sold with inaccurate labels.
While the lack of oversight is dangerous for adult consumers, children are the most at risk with these products. Companies intentionally manufacture products to look like regular candy and snacks, placing them within easy reach of children and teenagers.
As a result, minors can walk into gas stations and purchase these unregulated products with no age verification. Without child-resistant packaging, younger children are accidentally ingesting these products.
The numbers out of Pennsylvania are alarming. For example, the state has recorded notable rates of delta 8 THC exposure cases reported to the national poison data system, a stark reminder that this is not a distant problem. It is happening here, in our communities, to our neighbors and our children.
I commend Congress for closing the hemp loophole last year, after understanding the harm it was having on everyday families across the nation. That decision was a meaningful step toward protecting the families and children in the communities I have sworn to serve.
Reversing this decision, however, would be a serious mistake.
We shouldn’t be talking about reopening a loophole that will only harm public safety and health. What we should be discussing is how to remove intoxicating hemp products from our communities entirely.
There is an overwhelming amount of evidence pointing to the damage these intoxicating hemp products have had on Berks County and Pennsylvania as a whole. With the industry failing to self-regulate at every turn, they cannot be trusted to act responsibly. As a result, the only way to fully protect our communities and keep these dangerous products out of the hands of our children is to keep the loophole closed and allow states to regulate the industry.
The Pennsylvania state legislature is currently aiming to do just that. State lawmakers are considering a bill that would bar the sale of intoxicating hemp-derived THC products, including delta 8-THC. They recognize that unregulated hemp products are being sold openly at gas stations, vape shops and convenience stores statewide, a public health risk and regulatory blind spot we can no longer ignore.
Pennsylvania’s families and children deserve better than an unregulated, dangerous market. I urge Congress to stand by its decision and keep the hemp loophole closed.
This is a contributed opinion column. John T. Adams is the Berks County district attorney.
