Earlier this month, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed new emergency restrictions on California’s hemp industry, citing an urgent need to protect children. His concern: a class of loosely regulated products that contain intoxicating levels of THC, the compound known for causing cannabis highs.
While many agree some changes are necessary, a number of business owners and consumers worry the governor’s new rules are too strict and will kneecap a nascent industry just as it’s hitting the mainstream.
Critics say the proposed regulations would effectively outlaw a wide range of popular tinctures, capsules, beverages and other products derived from industrial hemp, including those that contain mostly CBD, a non-intoxicating cousin of THC…