House Bill 1502, legislation that would have placed new regulations on edible hemp retail products in Mississippi, including removing many from the shelves, died as lawmakers left the capitol on Thursday. The measure’s author, Rep. Lee Yancey, R-Brandon, said it died due to misinformation spread by lobbyists and media.
The 210-page bill known as the “Mississippi Hemp Act” would have effectively outlawed unregulated products containing hemp – which contains THC and is derived from the same plant as marijuana – while allowing the regulated sale of beverages containing hemp to Mississippians 21 or older. Only beverages under the limit of .3% THC would be admissible for sale, staying in line with the limit outlined in the federal Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, commonly known as the Farm Bill.
As explained by Yancey, the driving force behind the legislation was to remove the possibility of children purchasing and consuming hemp-infused products. Recent reports from the FDA point to a rising problem of minors experiencing detrimental health effects from the ingestion of hemp or CBD products. Such a case occurred in late March when six Yazoo City middle schoolers were hospitalized after consuming THC edibles.
But according to Yancey and Phillip Chamblee, executive director of the Mississippi Petroleum & Convenience Stores Association, the bill was improperly framed as a step toward legalizing recreational marijuana in the Magnolia State, drawing staunch opposition from law enforcement agencies and other lawmakers.
“These are already being sold in the gas stations and in the supermarkets, and it will become more and more rampant across our state,” Yancey said on Mornings with Richard Cross. “We had a chance to stop this [on Tuesday], but because of a knee jerk reaction from some people – from lobbyists, from law enforcement listening to lobbyists, from radio misinformation – we are very much in danger of not having these products out of the gas stations.”
Under current Mississippi law, there are few restrictions on the sale of hemp gummies, vape cartridges, and other hemp products if they are under the established limit of .3% THC. But hemp and its synthetic derivatives in many consumable products can undergo “decarboxylation,” in which the THC becomes more potent if heated or left beyond an expiration date.
Yancey and other proponents of the bill said those are the products – which a customer of any age can currently purchase – that are “dangerous” and that the bill would have removed. He went on to note that the hemp beverages are not dangerous and are “basically a gimmick” as the THC content is negligible – though the measure would have placed an age minimum of 21 for purchasers of such drinks.
HB 1502’s author says many sellers at gas stations and convenience stores take advantage of this loophole to sell products that have a potency far higher than the intended limit.
“Every law enforcement agency in the state should be in the capitol pushing for this bill,” Yancey said. “What we’re trying to do is get rid of the bad stuff and regulate the good stuff. This bill was going to protect people – getting rid of basically recreational marijuana.”
A months-long back-and-forth between the House and Senate led to a stalling of HB 1502 in conference, leaving the legislation to be tabled lifelessly before it died upon both chambers adjourning sine die.
Even with a special session looming following the 2025 regular legislative session, the odds are slim that the “Mississippi Hemp Act” will gain new life, leaving another year for its advocates to work toward regulation of hemp products available in the state.