{"id":4974,"date":"2026-07-04T16:34:28","date_gmt":"2026-07-04T16:34:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=4974"},"modified":"2026-07-04T16:34:28","modified_gmt":"2026-07-04T16:34:28","slug":"nc-senate-approves-bill-that-could-send-states-billion-dollar-hemp-industry-up-in-smoke","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=4974","title":{"rendered":"NC Senate approves bill that could send state\u2019s billion-dollar hemp industry up in smoke"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) \u2014 Today, the shelves at hemp dispensaries across North Carolina are packed with THC gummies, drinks,\u00a0vapes and other intoxicating hemp products, but by this fall, most of them could disappear.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=4972\">\u2018Armed and dangerous\u2019 suspect in teen killings in Roanoke Rapids is captured in Wake County: Sheriff<\/a><\/p>\n<p>A bill approved by the NC Senate on Thursday has hemp business owners bracing for what they say could be a devastating blow.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis legislation is throwing the baby out with the bathwater,\u201d said Eric Stahl, owner of Modern Apotheca in Raleigh. \u201cIt\u2019s getting rid of every single retailer, farmer or manufacturer in North Carolina who carries or manufactures these products and replaces them with nothing other than a ban to make them completely illegal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>House Bill 328 would immediately ban the sale of intoxicating hemp products to anyone under 21 if it becomes law. Violations would constitute a Class 2 misdemeanor, and businesses could face civil fines ranging from $2,500 to $50,000.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe want to protect children from these products. And so that\u2019s really the sense of urgency that we\u2019ve leaned into,\u201d said state Sen. Michael Lee (R-New Hanover).<\/p>\n<p>It would also redefine hemp under North Carolina law to match a new federal standard taking effect in November: 0.4mg per container. Stahl said that\u2019s effectively a death sentence to the industry.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEssentially, 99% of\u00a0the products you see on our shelf today would be made illegal,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>A recent\u00a0Whitney Economics report\u00a0estimates the industry employs more than 16,000 North Carolinians and generates $3.2 billion in annual revenue, for a total economic impact of $4.4 billion.<\/p>\n<p>Modern Apotheca already requires customers to be 21 or over. For years, Stahl said he has lobbied lawmakers for regulations, not an outright ban. He supports mandatory ID checks, product testing and stronger oversight of the industry.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=4970\">Fuquay-Varina police officer fires at suspect who pointed gun near Action Park<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019d never want this\u00a0to end up in the hands of children. The average user of hemp products today in North Carolina are women 45-plus. So, what we really have to do is eliminate access in places like vape shops and gas stations that aren\u2019t following those same 21-plus guidelines,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>For Stahl, the fight is also personal. He said he opened Modern Apotheca in 2018 after seeing how hemp\u00a0products helped his wife manage Crohn\u2019s disease.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe got into this because we are passionate about it. If hemp becomes illegal, I actually don\u2019t know what I do with myself. I have seven employees behind you. I have three daughters,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>During debate Thursday, State Sen. Lisa Grafstein (D-Wake) warned banning the products could simply push sales underground.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy concern\u00a0is that this simply opens up a black market that will expose our kids to even worse things,\u201d she said. \u201cWe may be causing ourselves a different problem and maybe a more intractable problem once this becomes a criminal enterprise on the streets.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beyond hemp, the bill also bans synthetic kratom and the sale of kratom products to anyone under 21. It also adds xylazine, a powerful veterinary sedative increasingly found in illegal street drugs, to the state\u2019s Controlled Substances Act as a Schedule III substance.<\/p>\n<p>The bill has already passed the NC Senate. If it passes the House and is signed into law, the age restrictions would take effect immediately, while the new hemp standard would begin in November to coincide with the federal law.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have a really, strong chance they\u2019re going to get it done,\u201d said Stahl. \u201cUnless the people of North Carolina make such a racket that they understand.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=4968\">Serena Williams withdraws from doubles match with sister Venus at Wimbledon due to injury<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) \u2014 Today, the shelves at hemp dispensaries across North Carolina are packed with THC gummies, drinks,\u00a0vapes and other intoxicating hemp products, but by this fall, most of them could disappear. A bill approved by the NC Senate on Thursday has hemp business owners bracing for what they say could be a devastating [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4973,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>NC Senate approves bill that could send state\u2019s billion-dollar hemp industry up in smoke - Raleigh Moving News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=4974\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NC Senate approves bill that could send state\u2019s billion-dollar hemp industry up in smoke - Raleigh Moving News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) \u2014 Today, the shelves at hemp dispensaries across North Carolina are packed with THC gummies, drinks,\u00a0vapes and other intoxicating hemp products, but by this fall, most of them could disappear. 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