Senate Votes to Extend Hemp THC Ban Timeline

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate voted to table a bipartisan amendment that would have kept a federal hemp THC ban on schedule for November. By a 61-32 margin, the chamber defeated a proposal from Sen. Ted Budd (R) that would have stripped a delay provision from a continuing resolution (CR) funding the federal government through December 11. The underlying spending bill then cleared by a vote of 90-6.

The ban, enacted in November 2025 within a government funding package that ended a federal shutdown, would prohibit hemp products containing more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container. It would also shift the federal definition of hemp from a 0.3% delta-9 THC threshold to 0.3% total THC, folding tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) into the compliance calculation.

One carve-out is not delayed.
Synthetic cannabinoids, not capable of being naturally produced by the Cannabis plant, remain scheduled for prohibition on November 12.

The White House had requested the extension. Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought urged House Speaker Mike Johnson in June to attach either a regulatory package or a delay to upcoming spending legislation. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D), who worked overnight to build bipartisan support, led the tabling motion alongside co-sponsor Sen. Rand Paul (R), calling the extension critical for farmers, brewers, and small businesses across the hemp supply chain.

Budd’s amendment attracted roughly a dozen Senate co-sponsors and drew backing from a bipartisan coalition of 35 state and territory attorneys general, who wrote to Congress arguing the forthcoming prohibition had already delivered regulatory clarity and consumer protection. On the Senate floor, Budd called intoxicating hemp products available at gas stations and c-stores a public health crisis threatening children and military readiness.

Industry advocates called the outcome a significant legislative win. Jonathan Miller, general counsel for the U.S. Hemp Roundtable, rated the CR provision the most consequential victory for the sector going back to the 2018 Farm Bill. The Beverage Alcohol Merchants Coalition, representing major national retailers, also backed the extension, citing the need for time to build a federal framework governing low-dose hemp-derived THC beverages.

The framework advocates are pressing for is the Lawful Hemp Protection Act, introduced July 22 by Rep. Andy Barr (R) and Rep. Angie Craig (D). The bill would set national potency caps, mandate age verification, and close loopholes that allowed synthetic THC products into the market. With the House expected to take up the CR after Labor Day, supporters have a narrow window to attach that regulatory language or advance it through separate legislation before December 11.

A one-month extension changes the calendar, not the underlying regulatory gap. For operators, distributors, and investors in the hemp THC space, December 11 is now the governing deadline, but it carries no guarantee of a legislative resolution. The Lawful Hemp Protection Act is the most coherent vehicle in play, and the House’s post-recess vote will be the deciding factor for capital markets exposure to the hemp sector.