H.R. 525 (114^th): Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015

The Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015 would amend the Controlled Substances Act to remove industrial hemp from the list of controlled substances. Industrial hemp is produced from the same plant as marijuana, Cannabis sativa L., but is commonly used in clothing, foods, and a variety of other products. Currently industrial hemp is regulated as a form of marijuana. The bill would define industrial hemp based on insignificant levels of delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active ingredient in marijuana. It would exclude industrial hemp from the definition of marijuana. There was a previous version of this bill in 2014 which died in committee. The bill has been reintroduced to the the Senate and to the House.

The summary below was written by the Congressional Research Service, which is a nonpartisan division of the Library of Congress, and was published on Jan 26, 2015.

Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2015

Amends the Controlled Substances Act to exclude industrial hemp from the definition of "marihuana." Defines "industrial hemp" to mean the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of such plant, whether growing or not, with a delta-nine tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis. Deems Cannabis sativa L. to meet that concentration limit if a person grows or processes it for purposes of making industrial hemp in accordance with state law.