The Florida legislature passed a bill late last night that will limit the amount of THC in hemp-derived products. While similar attempts to cap the THC in such products have been defeated in the past, SB 1698 passed the House with a 64-48 split, while the Senate unanimously supported it. Once signed by Governor DeSantis, it will go into effect on October 1, 2024.

SB 1698: A Breakdown of the New Regulations

SB 1698 revises the definition of “hemp” to specify that it does not include synthetically or naturally occurring versions of substances such as delta-8 THC, making such products containing these substances illegal to be sold as hemp in the state of Florida. Notably, a compromise was made to include language that caps the products to five milligrams of delta-9 THC per serving and 50 milligrams per container. The Florida bill also revises the definition of “attractive to children” to expand the types of hemp products that are considered attractive to children and therefore prohibited, and prohibits an event organizer from promoting, advertising, or facilitating an event where hemp extract products that do not comply are sold or marketed or where hemp extract products are sold or marketed by businesses that are not properly permitted.