Bill would require state to regulate and tax hemp-derived products

Posted on May 8, 2024
State Rep. La Shawn Ford (D-Chicago). (Dave Dahl/WJBC)

By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD – A bill at the Illinois Capitol would end the days of hemp being in a Wild West.

Regulation. Taxation. Safety. A ban on products that look like kids’ snacks. Those are all part of a bill sponsored by State Rep. La Shawn Ford (D-Chicago).

“This must be done right,” Ford told a statehouse news conference Tuesday, “without starting a new war on drugs in Illinois. I do not support a ban on an entire industry. And we shouldn’t hand over the independent hemp industry over to a couple hundred rich investors who already own the licensed cannabis market.”

Ford and others said Illinois is missing out on about $37 million a year in tax revenue.

Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected]

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