Reps. Craig, Baird Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Delay Changes to Hemp Regulations, Allow Congress to Find Permanent Fix

WASHINGTON, DC — Today, U.S. Representative and House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Angie Craig and Representative Jim Baird (IN-04) introduced a bipartisan bill to delay changes to federal hemp law that would hurt Minnesota’s hemp producers and small business owners.

The Hemp Planting Predictability Act amends the restrictive hemp policies that outlaw any hemp product with greater than 0.4 milligrams of THC by delaying these recent changes from going into effect until 2028. Farm operations plan crop rotation and capital investments years in advance, making a one-year notice unreasonably burdensome for America’s hemp farmers. Similarly, small businesses, including brewers, have invested in building out nonalcoholic hemp-infused beverages. Prohibiting those products would be a financially fatal wound for many craft brewers in Minnesota.

This bill provides farmers, businesses, as well as state regulators the time to adjust to changing federal policies. It also provides Congress with the time to hold hearings, engage with experts and draft a comprehensive cross-agency cannabis strategy focused on naturally derived cannabinoids and addressing valid concerns with the current federal hemp laws. Congress must work to put a comprehensive framework in place that ensure there are durable and transparent guidelines on production and manufacturing for farmers and small businesses, clear and legal opportunities for hemp fiber and grains, and safe standards in place to ensure that hemp products are labeled appropriately and only for adults.

“Recent changes to hemp production and processing regulations pulled the rug out from under Minnesota’s hemp producers, craft brewers and retailers at a time when too many business owners are already dealing with high prices and uncertainty,” said Rep. Craig “I’m proud to be introducing this common sense legislation with my colleague Rep. Baird to fight these ill-thought out policies and support the farmers and small business owners who make up Minnesota’s $200 million hemp industry.”

“Planting and growing crops requires planning well in advance," said Rep. Baird. "Congress created a regulatory environment in the 2018 Farm Bill that allowed for certain investments, and farmers were operating within this environment. The hemp provision included in the Continuing Resolution and Appropriations bills passed in November 2025 disrupted planting decisions that had already been made. Congress should not have passed such a sweeping policy change that upends a growing industry. Instead, Congress should have given farmers more time, creating a more stable environment for farmers to modify their future planting decisions. I am proud to introduce this legislation to ensure farmers have predictability and sufficient time to adjust to new laws that affect their livelihood."

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