Local lawmakers are pushing for hearings on Illinois' hemp industry next month, highlighting a push for further regulation and more emphasis on social equity in the business.
Chicago Ald. William Hall said Thursday that he will be seeking a public subject hearing on hemp shortly after the new year.
“Hemp is legal. Hemp is not the issue. It is the bad players that are the issues,” Hall said at a City Hall news conference.
He pointed to a recent incident in Rogers Park where a number of students required hospitalization after consuming a hemp gummy.
“Any time you have children five, six, seven years old who can go to a gas station or just a shop to get this, that’s unacceptable,” Hall said.
The announcement comes as Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker is slated to announce a crackdown Friday on delta-8 THC, a largely unregulated psychoactive compound that is often found at gas stations and smoke shops that differs from delta-9 THC that is found in regulated cannabis products available at dispensaries.
“This is about safety first, revenue second,” Hall said Thursday.
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Hall estimated that there are roughly 260 shops selling hemp products in the city, which could generate $22 million a year in revenue.
Misty McMichael, the wife of Pro Football Hall of Famer Steve "Mongo" McMichael who suffers from ALS, is advocating for further regulation while praising its impact on her husband's quality of life.
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“It’s really helped him to live longer, not be in pain, lowered his blood pressure,” McMichael said.
Entrepreneur Thromone Davenport said regulation would lead to more peace of mind and job security for those in the business.
"We want the regulation because what we don’t want to do is invest in a bunch of money in that and the state comes back and they ban it,” Davenport said.
