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Hemp Removed From DEA Drug Schedule; SD Activists Want Clarifications From State

Victoria Wicks

Hemp activists in South Dakota intend to ask the legislature to clear up confusion surrounding the recent decriminalization of hemp.

In the most recent farm bill, Congress legalized hemp. The plant had been listed by the Drug Enforcement Administration as a Schedule I drug, a dangerous substance with no medicinal value.

Now it's a crop, albeit one needing a license from the USDA.

Pat Cromwell

The Food and Drug Administration also claims jurisdiction over hemp cannabidiol, or CBD, when it is touted as having medicinal value.

Hemp advocates plan to introduce legislation in Pierre this term to address these changed circumstances.

SDPB's Victoria Wicks has this report.

For an explanation of post-farm-bill laws, click on this link:

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2018/12/14/the-farm-bill-hemp-and-cbd-explainer/

Rapid City freelancer Victoria L. Wicks has been producing news for SDPB since August 2007. She Retired from this position in March 2023.