Wyden, McConnell Call On Regulators to Prevent Discrimination of Legal Hemp Industry

Oregon Senator Ron Wyden is calling on Federal Financial Regulators to Prevent Discrimination of Legal Hemp Industry.  On Tuesday, Wyden joined Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell sending letters to several federal banking and financial regulatory institutions reiterating hemp’s legality.  The two requested guidance and clarification to help ease concerns from hemp farmers and producers about the lack of access to financial services.

The commercial growing of hemp became legal under the 2018 Farm Bill, removing it from the federal list of controlled substances.  Hemp, the letter said, is a legal businesses and should be treated just like any other businesses and not discriminated against.

Oregon has been on the forefront of hemp production since pilot programs were established under the 2014 Farm Bill.

“While some banks have agreed to offer financial services to the growing hemp industry, many banks have not due to confusion over the legal status of hemp,” the senators wrote. “However, as hemp is no longer a controlled substance, banks should feel secure in engaging with this industry…Legal hemp businesses should be treated just like any other businesses and not discriminated against.”

Wyden says farmers and producers in Oregon are excited to explore the full economic opportunities for hemp but still face barriers despite passage of the McConnell/Wyden language in the 2018 Farm Bill, which legalized hemp and removed it from the federal list of controlled substances.

The Hemp Farming Act provisions in the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (2018 Farm Bill) signed into law on December 20, 2018, removed hemp and its derivatives from the list of controlled substances, established hemp as a legal agricultural commodity, and authorized the production, consumption, and sale of hemp and hemp-derived products in the United States. As authors of theHemp Farming Act, Wyden and McConnell are committed to listening to the concerns of hemp farmers and producers and to urging federal agencies to properly implement the law.

Click Here to read the entire Letter submitted by the senators.

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