Massie + Polis Introduce Bipartisan Industrial Hemp Bill

[Matt Collins]

From a press release:

U.S. Representatives Massieand Polis Introduce Bipartisan Industrial Hemp Bill

Bipartisan coalition of 47 Members propose bill to allow commercial cultivation of industrial hemp

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY), Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO), and a bipartisan coalition of 45 lawmakers introduced federal legislation that requires the federal government to respect state laws allowing cultivation of industrial hemp. The Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015 (H.R. 525) amends the Controlled Substances Act to exclude industrial hemp from the definition of marijuana.

“I'm optimistic that we can get the Industrial Hemp Farming Act to the President's desk this Congress,” saidRepresentative Massie. “In 2014, for the first time in over half a century, hemp was grown and harvested in Kentucky under the pilot programs allowed by the Polis-Massie-Blumenauer amendment to the 2014 Farm Bill. I look forward to building on last year’s momentum to give our nation's farmers and manufacturers more opportunities to compete and succeed in the global economy."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, ​who cosponsored the Senate version, said, “I’ve heard from countless Kentuckians about the success of our initial 2014 industrial hemp pilot programs and university studies in the Commonwealth. I am especially proud that Rep. Massie and I were able to work together in making those projects possible on the federal level via the 2014 Farm Bill. I support this legislation and look forward to seeing industrial hemp prosper in the Commonwealth.”

“I’m excited to join with Representative Massie to introduce common-sense, bipartisan legislation that will once again allow American farmers to benefit from industrial hemp,” said Representative Jared Polis. “The federal ban on hemp has been a waste of taxpayer dollars that ignores science, suppresses innovation, and subverts the will of states that have chosen to incorporate this versatile crop into their economies. I am hopeful that Congress will build on last year’s progress on hemp research and pilot programs by passing the Industrial Hemp Farming Act to allow this historical American crop to once again thrive on our farmlands.”

“From the first day I took office, I’ve worked with a bipartisan group of partners to unlock the potential of industrial hemp to create jobs and farm income,” Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer said. “We’ve made tremendous strides in a short time, but now we need to take the next step and make hemp production legal for anyone who wants to grow and process it. Rep. Massie has stood side by side with us from the beginning, and I appreciate all his efforts to get this done.”

“Voters across the country have made it clear that they believe industrial hemp should be regulated as an agricultural commodity, not a drug," said Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), a key Member in passing the Polis-Massie-Blumenauer amendment to the Farm Bill. "Last Congress, we made it clear that a majority of our colleagues feel the same way by passing an amendment to the Farm Bill allowing colleges and universities to grow industrial hemp for research purposes in states where it is already legal to do so. This legislation, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act, is the critical next step, while at the same time creating meaningful jobs and restoring an important industry in the U.S.”

“The American family farmer is the backbone of this nation,” said Michael Lewis, a Rockcastle County, Ky., farmer who participated in a hemp pilot project in 2014. “With farmers struggling with rising expenses and declining prices for traditional crops, restoring the right to grow one of our nation’s historic cash crops makes sense. The time has come to remove the draconian regulations surrounding industrial hemp and enable the American farmer to rebuild our rural economy.”

Kentucky made significant progress on this issue in 2014 under the leadership of Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer at the state level and Senate Majority Leader McConnell, Senator Paul, and Representative Massie at the federal level. In early 2014, the President signed into law a Farm Bill that contained an expanded Polis-Massie-Blumenauer amendment allowing research institutions and state agriculture departments to grow and cultivate industrial hemp in states where it is already legal to do so. Additionally, last December's CR/Omnibus included Congressman Massie's amendment to further support the hemp pilot projects enabled by the Farm Bill. The Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015 would finally remove the legal barriers that have prohibited the cultivation of hemp for commercial purposes.


Background:

Kentucky was a leading producer of the world’s industrial hemp supply during America’s early years as a nation. It is used in hundreds of products including paper, lotions, clothing, canvas, rope, and food. Critics of industrial hemp mistakenly equate it to marijuana. The plants are cousins in the cannabis family but industrial hemp does not contain a psychoactive amount of the intoxicant (THC) found in marijuana, making it ineffective as a drug. Hemp is grown in over 30 western nations including Canada, England and France.

On January 8th, 2015, U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Rand Paul (R-KY), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell introduced the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015 (S. 134) in the Senate.

Rep. Massie introduced an identical bill in the 113th Congress. The Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015 (H.R. 525) has 46 original cosponsors in the House, including House Agriculture Committee ranking member Collin Peterson (D-MN). The original cosponsors are: Reps Justin Amash (R-MI), Andy Barr (R-KY), Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Ken Buck (R-CO), Matt Cartwright (D-PA), Lacy Clay (D-MO), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Diana DeGette (D-CO), Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Suzan DelBene (D-WA), Keith Ellison (D-MN), Sam Farr (D-CA), Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), Richard Hanna (R-NY), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Mike Honda (D-CA), Raúl Labrador (R-ID), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Tom McClintock (R-CA), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Jim McDermott (D-WA), Mick Mulvaney (R-SC), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Beto O'Rourke (D-TX), Scott Perry (R-PA), Collin Peterson (D-MN), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Jared Polis (D-CO), Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Kurt Schrader (D-OR), Steve Stivers (R-OH), Tim Ryan (D-OH), Tim Walz (D-MN), Pete Welch (D-VT), Ted Yoho (R-FL), Don Young (R-AK), Todd Young (R-IN), John Yarmuth (D-KY), and Ryan Zinke (R-MT).

[navy-vet]

From a press release:

In fact, the US Government encouraged the production of hemp for rope during WW2.
"Hemp for Victory"
During World War II, imports of hemp and other materials crucial for producing marine cordage, parachutes, and other military necessities became scarce. In response the U.S. Department of Agriculture launched its "Hemp for Victory" program, encouraging farmers to plant hemp by giving out seeds and granting draft deferments to those who would stay home and grow hemp. By 1943 American farmers registered in the program harvested 375,000 acres of hemp.-pbs.org

[navy-vet]

And with the introduction of synthetics by duPont, hemp was no longer needed and in fact competed with their line of synthetics as well as chemicals for other products like hemps rival, cotton.

[squarepusher]

And with the introduction of synthetics by duPont, hemp was no longer needed and in fact competed with their line of synthetics as well as chemicals for other products like hemps rival, cotton.

Capitalism at its finest! Get the government to pass a law to make your competitors product illegal.

[tsai3904]

H.R. 525, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015, now has 59 cosponsors.

This is the most number of cosponsors identical legislation in prior Congresses has had:

113th: 50
112th: 37
111th: 25
110th: 13

Current cosponsors:

Rep Amash, Justin [MI-3] - 1/26/2015
Rep Barr, Andy [KY-6] - 1/26/2015
Rep Benishek, Dan [MI-1] - 2/9/2015
Rep Blumenauer, Earl [OR-3] - 1/26/2015
Rep Bonamici, Suzanne [OR-1] - 1/26/2015
Rep Buck, Ken [CO-4] - 1/26/2015
Rep Cartwright, Matt [PA-17] - 1/26/2015
Rep Clay, Wm. Lacy [MO-1] - 1/26/2015
Rep Cohen, Steve [TN-9] - 1/26/2015
Rep Connolly, Gerald E. [VA-11] - 2/10/2015
Rep Courtney, Joe [CT-2] - 7/14/2015
Rep Cramer, Kevin [ND] - 1/26/2015
Rep DeFazio, Peter A. [OR-4] - 1/26/2015
Rep DeGette, Diana [CO-1] - 1/26/2015
Rep DeLauro, Rosa L. [CT-3] - 1/26/2015
Rep DelBene, Suzan K. [WA-1] - 1/26/2015
Rep Ellison, Keith [MN-5] - 1/26/2015
Rep Farr, Sam [CA-20] - 1/26/2015
Rep Gabbard, Tulsi [HI-2] - 1/26/2015
Rep Grijalva, Raul M. [AZ-3] - 1/26/2015
Rep Hanna, Richard L. [NY-22] - 1/26/2015
Rep Honda, Michael M. [CA-17] - 1/26/2015
Rep Huffman, Jared [CA-2] - 1/27/2015
Rep Jones, Walter B., Jr. [NC-3] - 1/26/2015
Rep Labrador, Raul R. [ID-1] - 1/26/2015
Rep Lee, Barbara [CA-13] - 1/26/2015
Rep Lofgren, Zoe [CA-19] - 1/26/2015
Rep Lowey, Nita M. [NY-17] - 7/28/2015
Rep Massie, Thomas [KY-4] (introduced 1/26/2015)
Rep McClintock, Tom [CA-4] - 1/26/2015
Rep McCollum, Betty [MN-4] - 1/26/2015
Rep McDermott, Jim [WA-7] - 1/26/2015
Rep Mulvaney, Mick [SC-5] - 1/26/2015
Rep Nadler, Jerrold [NY-10] - 1/26/2015
Rep Norton, Eleanor Holmes [DC] - 1/26/2015
Rep O'Rourke, Beto [TX-16] - 1/26/2015
Rep Perlmutter, Ed [CO-7] - 4/13/2015
Rep Perry, Scott [PA-4] - 1/26/2015
Rep Peterson, Collin C. [MN-7] - 1/26/2015
Rep Pingree, Chellie [ME-1] - 1/26/2015
Rep Pocan, Mark [WI-2] - 1/26/2015
Rep Polis, Jared [CO-2] - 1/26/2015
Rep Rohrabacher, Dana [CA-48] - 1/26/2015
Rep Ryan, Tim [OH-13] - 1/26/2015
Rep Sanford, Mark [SC-1] - 2/4/2015
Rep Schakowsky, Janice D. [IL-9] - 1/26/2015
Rep Schrader, Kurt [OR-5] - 1/26/2015
Rep Speier, Jackie [CA-14] - 6/1/2015
Rep Stivers, Steve [OH-15] - 1/26/2015
Rep Swalwell, Eric [CA-15] - 2/3/2015
Rep Titus, Dina [NV-1] - 1/27/2015
Rep Walden, Greg [OR-2] - 6/10/2015
Rep Walz, Timothy J. [MN-1] - 1/26/2015
Rep Welch, Peter [VT] - 1/26/2015
Rep Whitfield, Ed [KY-1] - 2/4/2015
Rep Yarmuth, John A. [KY-3] - 1/26/2015
Rep Yoho, Ted S. [FL-3] - 1/26/2015
Rep Young, Don [AK] - 1/26/2015
Rep Young, Todd C. [IN-9] - 1/26/2015
Rep Zinke, Ryan K. [MT] - 1/26/2015

https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-...pageSort=alpha

The Senate bill, S. 134, also has the most cosponsors its ever had:

Sen Baldwin, Tammy [WI] - 6/17/2015
Sen Bennet, Michael F. [CO] - 6/8/2015
Sen Daines, Steve [MT] - 3/9/2015
Sen Franken, Al [MN] - 3/9/2015
Sen Gardner, Cory [CO] - 2/27/2015
Sen McConnell, Mitch [KY] - 1/8/2015
Sen Merkley, Jeff [OR] - 1/8/2015
Sen Paul, Rand [KY] - 1/8/2015
Sen Tester, Jon [MT] - 6/8/2015
Sen Wyden, Ron [OR] (introduced 1/8/2015)

[jct74]

update from Massie on facebook

Congressman Thomas Massie

May 23

UPDATE: H.R. 525, the Industrial #Hemp Farming Act, now has 69 co-sponsors. It's time to think #RopeNotDope and allow commercial-scale farming of hemp in states like Kentucky that choose to allow it.

This framed copy of my hemp amendment to the 2013 Farm Bill is printed on hemp paper and is one of the first things constituents see upon entering my D.C. office. This amendment allows colleges, universities and state departments of agriculture to grow and cultivate industrial hemp for academic and agricultural research purposes in states where it is already legal. My amendment was included in the final version of the farm bill, which passed both the House and Senate and was signed into law by the president. Since then, numerous pilot projects have successfully launched throughout Kentucky.

While this was a tremendous victory, my goal is to change the law even further so that hemp can be grown and used for more than simply academic and research purposes. That is why I reintroduced the Industrial Hemp Farming Act in January of last year. My bill changes the federal definition of marijuana to exclude industrial hemp, and would therefore prevent federal government interference with a state that chooses to produce hemp.

I am hopeful that as more citizens in Kentucky and throughout the nation learn about the economic benefits of hemp, its job-creating potential, and its place in our nation's history, #HR525 will pass both the House and Senate and become law.

Let's keep up the momentum!

Please thank the newest co-sponsors for their support:

U.S. Rep. Tony Cárdenas (D-CA)
U.S. Rep. Mark Takai (D-HI)
U.S. Rep. Paul D. Tonko (D-NY)
US Rep Rick Nolan (D-MN)

For more information, go here: http://massieforms.house.gov/news/em...T7C2GXZQWAJ7PM

https://www.facebook.com/RepThomasMa...353062/?type=3