Title: State Hemp Program

Summary: Creates state hemp program within DACS; directs DACS to submit plan to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture for approval, maintain land registry & submit monthly reports, & adopt rules in consultation with DOH & DBPR; provides licensure requirements; requires licensees to use specified hemp seeds & cultivars; provides requirements for distribution & sale of hemp extract; provides for violations, corrective measures, & enforcement; revises colleges & universities at which department is required to authorize & oversee industrial hemp pilot projects.

Full Text:
An act relating to the state hemp program; creating s. 581.217, F.S.; creating the state hemp program within the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; providing legislative findings; providing definitions; directing the department to submit a plan for the state program to the United States Secretary of Agriculture for approval; providing licensure requirements; requiring licensees to use specified hemp seeds and cultivars; providing requirements for the distribution and sale of hemp extract; directing the department to maintain a land registry and submit monthly reports to the United States Secretary of Agriculture; providing for violations and corrective measures; providing for enforcement of the state hemp program; directing the department, in consultation with the Department of Health and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, to adopt specified rules; providing applicability; amending s. 893.02, F.S.; revising the definition of the term "cannabis"; amending s. 1004.4473, F.S.; revising the colleges and universities at which the department is required to authorize and oversee the development of industrial hemp pilot projects; providing a neffective date. CS/CS/HB 2019 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Section 581.217, Florida Statutes, is created to read: 581.217 State hemp program.-(1) CREATION AND PURPOSE.-The state hemp program is created within the department to regulate the cultivation of hemp in the state. This section constitutes the state plan for the regulation of the cultivation of hemp for purposes of 35 U.S.C. s. 1639p. (2) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.-The Legislature finds that: (a) Hemp is an a gricultural commodity. (b) Hemp-derived cannabinoids, including, but not limited to, cannabidiol, are not controlled substances or adulterants. (3) DEFINITIONS.-As used in this section, the term: (a) "Certifying agency" has the same meaning as in s. 578.011(8). (b) "Contaminants unsafe for human consumption" includes, but is not limited to, any microbe, fungus, yeast, mildew, herbicide, pesticide, fungicide, residual solvent, metal, or other contaminant found in any amount that exceeds any of the accepted limitations as determined by rules adopted by the Department of Health in accordance with s. 381.986, or other CS/CS/HB 2019 limitation pursuant to the laws of this state, whichever amount is less. (c) "Cultivate" means planting, watering, growing, or harvestin ghemp. (d) "Hemp" means the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of that plant, including the seeds thereof, and all derivatives, extracts, cannabinoids, isomers, acids, salts, and salts of isomers thereof, whether growing or not, that has a total delt a-tetrahydrocannabinol concentration that does not exceed 0.3 percent on a dry-weight basis. (e) "Hemp extract" means a substance or compound that is derived from or contains hemp and that does not contain other controlled substances. (f) "Independen ttesting laboratory" means a laboratory that: 1. Does not have a direct or indirect interest in the entity whose product is being tested; 2. Does not have a direct or indirect interest in a facility that cultivates, processes, distributes, dispenses, or sells hemp or hemp extract in the state or in another jurisdiction or cultivates, processes, distributes, dispenses, or sells marijuana, as defined in s. 381.986; and 3. Is accredited by a third-party accrediting body as a competent testing laboratory pursuant to ISO/IEC 17025 of the International Organization for Standardization. CS/CS/HB 2019 (4) FEDERAL APPROVAL.-The department shall seek approval of the state plan for the regulation of the cultivation of hemp with the United States Secretary of Agriculture in accordance with U.S.C. s. 1639p within days after adopting rules. If the state plan is not approved by the United States Secretary of Agriculture, the Commissioner of Agriculture, in consultation with the Governor and the Attorney General, shall seek guidance on how to amend the state plan and submit the recommendations to the Legislature. (5) LICENSURE. (a) It is unlawful for a person to cultivate hemp in this state without a license issued by th edepartment. (b) A person seeking to cultivate hemp must apply to the department for a license on a form prescribed by the department. (c) The department shall adopt rules establishing procedures for the issuance and annual renewal of a hemp license. (d) A person seeking to cultivate hemp must provide to the department the legal land description and global positioning coordinates of the area where hemp will be cultivated. (e) The department shall deny the issuance of a hemp license to an applicant, or refuse to renew the hemp license of a licensee, if the department finds that the applicant or licensee: CS/CS/HB 2019 1. Has falsified any information contained in an application for a hemp license or hemp license renewal; or 2. Has been convicted of a felony re lating to a controlled substance under state or federal law. A hemp license may not be issued for years following the date of the conviction. (6) HEMP SEED.-A licensee may only use hemp seeds and cultivars certified by a certifying agency or a univers ity conducting an industrial hemp pilot project pursuant to s. 1004.4473. (7) DISTRIBUTION AND RETAIL SALE OF HEMP EXTRACT.-Hemp extract may only be distributed and sold in the state if the product: (a) Has a certificate of analysis prepared by an independent testing laboratory that states: 1. The hemp extract is the product of a batch tested by the independent testing laboratory; 2. The batch contained a total delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol concentration that did not exceed 0.3 percent on a dry-weight basis pursuant to the testing of a random sample of the batch; and 3. The batch does not contain contaminants unsafe for human consumption. (b) Is distributed or sold in packaging that includes: CS/CS/HB 2019 1. A scannable barcode or quick response code linked to the certificate of analysis of the hemp extract by an independent testing laboratory; 2. The batch number; 3. The Internet address of a website where batch information may be obtained; 4. The expiration date; 5. The number of milligrams of hemp extract; and 6. A statement that the product contains a total delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol concentration that does not exceed 0.3 percent on a dry-weight basis. (8) LAND REGISTRY.-The department sha ll maintain a registry of land on which hemp is cultivated or has been cultivated within the past calendar years, including the global positioning coordinates and legal land description for each location. (9) DEPARTMENT REPORTING.-The department shall submit monthly to the United States Secretary of Agriculture a report of the locations in the state where hemp is cultivated or has been cultivated within the past calendar years. The report must include the contact information for each licensee. (10) VIOLATIONS.-(a) A licensee must complete a corrective action plan if the department determines that the licensee has negligently violated this section or department rules, including CS/CS/HB 2019 negligently: 1. Failing to provide the legal land description and global positioning coordinates pursuant to subsection (5); 2. Failing to obtain a proper license or other required authorization from the department; or 3. Producing Cannabis sativa L. that has a total delta 152 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration that ex ceeds 0.3 percent on a dry-weight basis.(b) The corrective action plan must include: 1. A reasonable date by which the licensee must correct the negligent violation; and 2. A requirement that the licensee periodically report to the department on com pliance with this section and department rules for a period of at least calendar years after the date of the violation. (c) A licensee who negligently violates the corrective action plan under this subsection three times within years is ineligible to cultivate hemp for years following the date of the third violation. (d) If the department determines that a licensee has violated this section or department rules with a culpable mental state greater than negligence, the department shall immediately report the licensee to the Attorney General and the United States Attorney General. (11) ENFORCEMENT.- CS/CS/HB 2019 (a) The department shall enforce this section. (b) Every state attorney, sheriff, police officer, and other appropriate county or municipal officer shall enforce, or assist any agent of the department in enforcing, this section and rules adopted by the department. (c) The department, or its agent, is authorized to enter any public or private premises during regular business hours in the performance of its duties relating to hemp cultivation. (d) The department shall conduct random inspections, at least annually, of each licensee to ensure that only certified hemp seeds are being used and that hemp is being cultivated in compliance with this section.(12) RULES.-By August 1, 2019, the department, in consultation with the Department of Health and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, shall initiate rulemaking to administer the state hemp program. The rules must provide for: (a) A procedure that uses post-decarboxylation or other similarly reliable methods for testing the delta 190 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of cultivated hemp. (b) A procedure for the effective disposal of plants, whether growing or not, that are cultivated in violation of this section or department rules, and products derived from those plants. (13) APPLICABILITY.-Notwithstanding any other law: CS/CS/HB 2019 (a) This section does not authorize a licensee to violate any federal or state law or regulation. (b) This section does not apply to a pilot project developed in accordance with U.S.C. 5940 and s. 1004.4473. (c) A licensee who negligently violates this section or department rules is not subject to any criminal or civil enforcement action by the state or a lo cal government other than the enforcement of violations of this section as authorized under subsection (10). Section 2. Subsection (3) of section 893.02, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 893.02 Definitions.-The following words and phrases as used in this chapter shall have the following meanings, unless the context otherwise requires: (3) "Cannabis" means all parts of any plant of the genus Cannabis, whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the resin extracted from any part of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant or its seeds or resin. The term does not include "marijuana," as defined in s. 381.986, if manufactured, possessed, sold, purchased, delivered, distributed, or dispensed, i nconformance with s. 381.986. The term does not include hemp as defined in s. 581.217 or industrial hemp as defined in s. 1004.4473. Section 3. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section CS/CS/HB 2019 1004.4473, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1004.4473 Ind ustrial hemp pilot projects.-(2)(a) The department shall authorize and oversee the development of industrial hemp pilot projects for the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences at the University of Florida, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical Univer sity, and any land grant university in the state that has a college of agriculture,and any Florida College System institution or state university that has an established agriculture, engineering, or pharmacy program. The department shall adopt rules as re quired under the Agricultural Act of 2014, U.S.C. s. 5940, to implement this section, including rules for the certification and registration of sites used for growth or cultivation. The purpose of the pilot projects is to cultivate, process, test, resear ch, create, and market safe and effective commercial applications for industrial hemp in the agricultural sector in this state. Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.