Vol. 1, Ed. 71 — Fri Oct 23: New Jersey Senate votes to extend hemp-drink sales

New Jersey's Senate votes 37-0 to extend hemp beverage sales to at least December 11; a DEA judge sets final rescheduling briefs; Illinois details Hemp Act licensing and fees ahead of November 12. For general information only — not legal advice.

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This is the New Realm Compliance Brief, Volume 1, Edition 71, for Friday, October 23.

New Jersey leads the day. The state Senate voted thirty seven to nothing to extend the deadline for selling intoxicating hemp beverages. Licensed liquor and cannabis businesses were set to lose that market on November thirteenth. The bill moves the date to at least December eleventh and ties it to the federal timeline, so any further federal delay carries over automatically. A companion bill is still pending in an Assembly committee.

At the federal level, the administrative law judge overseeing the D E A's marijuana rescheduling case declined to reopen the hearing for new testimony. He did accept a Government Accountability Office report into the record and set a final round of written briefs. Initial briefs are due October twenty ninth, replies November fifth, and the case stays paused until briefing closes.

Also on the federal docket, an eight count indictment unsealed Thursday charges Virginia state senator Louise Lucas, the Senate's president pro tempore and finance chair, with racketeering, marijuana distribution and money laundering conspiracies. Lucas said she will not be intimidated and will not back down.

Around the states: Illinois published licensing details for its new Hemp Act, effective November twelfth. Products over four tenths of a milligram of total T H C per container become cannabis, sellable only in licensed dispensaries. Hemp product manufacturers need a five thousand dollar, two year license and should apply by November ninth. Retailers of compliant products need no license but face new testing, labeling and packaging rules.

In Texas, hemp businesses sued the state health department over rules that count T H C A toward the legal limit and raised fees to ten thousand dollars a year for manufacturers and five thousand dollars per store for retailers.

And Massachusetts regulators opened a rewrite of cannabis product testing rules, with more discussion set for November twelfth.

Full details and source links are in today's email. This update is for general information only — it is not legal advice.