A coalition of hemp growers and manufacturers has sued the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, claiming that new limits on intoxicating hemp products are unconstitutional. The lawsuit, by the Alaska Industrial Hemp Association and four businesses, was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Anchorage.
Attorney Christopher Hoke, representing the plaintiffs, said the rules mean that virtually every hemp-derived product made in the state and for sale here — drinks, gummies, cookies, and more — will become illegal.
“We’re just harming our own here,” he said. He has requested a temporary restraining order to keep the ban from coming into effect while the lawsuit proceeds. “We’ve asked for expedited consideration,” Hoke said.
The DNR, its commissioner, the state director of agriculture, and Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom have been named in the lawsuit but have not yet filed a preliminary response to the complaint. The lawsuit stems from a regulation approved in October by Dahlstrom at the behest of the DNR. The regulation, which took effect Friday, states in part that DNR may not approve “an industrial hemp product that contains delta-9-THC.”
Read more at alaskapublic.org