WASHINGTON, D.C. – One Chance to Grow Up, a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to protecting youth from the harms of today’s marijuana and hemp-derived THC products, celebrates a major public-health victory this week with the continued preservation of the 2025 federal hemp loophole closure. During the markup of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee’s Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, no amendments were adopted or voted on to postpone the law’s implementation timeline—keeping the November 2026 deadline intact. This decision marks a significant step toward ending the widespread sale of intoxicating hemp-derived THC products in gas stations, convenience stores, smoke shops, and online where they have often been sold with little or no safeguards to protect children.

The 2018 Farm Bill was intended to legalize industrial hemp for agriculture and manufacturing—not to create a nationwide market for intoxicating THC products. However, a loophole in the language of the law allowed bad actors to chemically convert hemp-derived compounds into highly psychoactive drugs and sell them as “hemp” or “CBD,” often packaged to resemble familiar candies, snacks, and beverages that appeal to youth.

Since then, One Chance to Grow Up has been raising alarms about the risks these products pose to children and communities. Working alongside medical experts, public health organizations, and youth-serving groups across the country, the organization has spent years educating policymakers about the real-world harms and tragic human costs associated with these products—including rising poisonings, hospitalizations, impaired driving incidents, and serious mental-health effects.

A full closure of the intoxicating hemp loophole was signed into law last fall by President Trump through the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act of 2026. The law clarifies the federal definition of industrial hemp to exclude intoxicating hemp-derived products and sets a compliance deadline of November 2026. 

While some intoxicating hemp industry advocates are now pushing to delay that timeline, the House Agriculture Committee’s decision not to hold votes on amendments during markup signals that congressional leadership does not intend to weaken or postpone the law through this year’s Farm Bill. This follows the Senate’s overwhelming rejection last fall by a rare bipartisan supermajority of 76 Senators of an amendment that would have left the loophole open.

“We have been sounding the alarm on the risks these intoxicating hemp products pose to children since 2018,” said Diane Carlson, National Policy Director for One Chance to Grow Up. “For years, bad actors exploited an unintended federal loophole to put high-potency THC products into gas stations, convenience stores, and online marketplaces–often with little or no safeguards to keep them out of the hands of minors. The result has been rising poisonings, hospitalizations, impaired driving incidents, and serious mental health harms, including acute psychosis. By keeping the November 2026 implementation date in place, Congress is reaffirming its unwavering commitment to protecting the health, safety, and futures of our nation’s kids.”