Interested in trying CBD but unsure if it’s legal in your state? We’re here to help. Between federal and state laws, it can be confusing when trying to understand whether CBD products are legal where you live—or even where to look to find out! We’ll give you a rundown of the federal requirements around legal CBD as well as provide you with a list of states where CBD is legal according to state law.
WHAT’S THE FEDERAL LAW ON CBD?
The 2018 Farm Bill was signed into law by former President Trump. As a whole, the bill focused on agricultural and nutritional policies, but it also included some provisions regarding the cannabis plant. Primarily, it defined hemp as a cannabis plant containing less than 0.3 percent of THC. By differentiating hemp from cannabis plants that produce marijuana, hemp became federally legal.
Hemp is still highly regulated, both on the federal and state levels. It cannot be freely grown in your garden, for example, and it must contain less than 0.3 percent THC (otherwise it becomes non-hemp cannabis, which is federally illegal). The 2018 Farm Bill also established a system where state and federal governments must work together to license and regulate hemp. So, while hemp is technically legal federally, each state’s plan may vary.
IS CBD LEGAL IN MY STATE?
As of the writing of this article, CBD is legal in some form in most states but not all, and specific requirements vary from state to state. Here’s a brief rundown of state policies regarding CBD, including which states hemp is–and isn’t–legal in.
STATES WHERE CBD IS LEGAL WITHOUT ADDITIONAL RESTRICTIONS
- Alabama
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Maryland
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Tennessee
- Virginia
- Wyoming
STATES WHERE CBD IS LEGAL WITH ADDITIONAL RESTRICTIONS
No Use in Food/Beverages (when selling)
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Georgia
- Kansas
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- North Carolina
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
Restricted Use in Food/Beverages (when selling)
- Colorado (specifically baked goods)
- Connecticut (food/beverage use must be registered)
- Kentucky (no CBD tea allowed)
- Massachusetts (food/beverage use requires purity testing)
- New York (food/beverage use requires purity testing)
- Vermont (no use in meat/dairy; maple syrup has special rules)
Restrictions for Growing/Selling CBD
- Delaware (grower must be affiliated with Delaware State University)
- Louisiana (numerous product restrictions)
- Maine (CBD must be extracted from a licensed Maine hemp grower)
- Missouri (18+ only; state registration required to sell)
- Nevada (may only be sold in cannabis stores)
- Utah (state registration required to sell)
Special Label Requirements/Guidelines
- Florida
- Indiana
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Texas
Other Restrictions
- Idaho (must contain 0% THC and be derived from mature stalks, fiber from the stalks, oil or cake made from the seeds of the achene of the plant, any other compound of the mature stalks, or a sterilized seed of the plant incapable of germination)
- Mississippi (must be at least a 20:1 ratio of CBD to THC)
STATES WHERE CBD IS ILLEGAL FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC
- Iowa
WHAT ELSE SHOULD I KNOW WHEN PURCHASING CBD?
Apart from legality, you should always check to ensure the product you are purchasing has been third-party tested by a reputable lab and that the seller makes its certificates of analysis (COAs) easily accessible. You’ll also want to look for attributes that determine how high-quality (or not) the CBD is. For example, here are the standards we hold our products to:
- Pure and undiluted
- Full-spectrum
- Made from flowers and buds only
- Pesticide free
- Non-GMO
- Vegan
- Sustainably farmed with organic methods
- Time-tested heirloom hemp seeds
- No added isolate
- Third-party lab tested
In addition to quality, it’s also important to make sure you’re paying a fair price for CBD products. Unfortunately, many companies seriously over-charge customers. We recommend looking beyond the price tag and determining how much per milligram of CBD you are paying. In our opinion, if you are paying more than $0.04 per mg, you are being overcharged.
We believe in providing quality CBD for a fair (rational) price, which is why our 30ml, 2400mg bottles of CBD oil cost just $0.036 per mg of CBD. Ready to give it a try? Head on over to our shop.
Rational Hemp is regulatory-compliant and contains trace levels of THC under 0.3%. While we know of no instance where a drug test came back positive after using our Hemp Extract, we cannot guarantee this result. Speak to a physician before using CBD if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking prescription medications.
