It’s high time for Wisconsin to legalize it
With a looming federal ban, the state risks a massive economic blow unless it passes its own legislation to regulate and legalize THC products
The Recombobulation Area is a 19-time Milwaukee Press Club award-winning opinion column and online publication founded by longtime Milwaukee journalist Dan Shafer. The Recombobulation Area is now part of Civic Media.
It’s time for Wisconsin to fully legalize hemp and marijuana. The clock is officially ticking.
You’d be forgiven if you’re confused that the mind-altering bud isn’t already legal in the state, at least in some capacity. Since 2018, a loophole in the federal Farm Bill has allowed for the production and sale of hemp-derived THC products, even in states (like Wisconsin) where cannabis products are still illegal. To clarify, hemp and marijuana are essentially two varieties of the same species of plant, cannabis sativa. Marijuana has 25% THC content or more and hemp has just 0.3% or less. THC is the psychotropic compound that gets you high.
A booming business of hemp-derived products has since sprouted in Wisconsin, accounting for an estimated $700 million a year in revenue and at least 3,500 jobs. Suddenly, thanks to the 2018 bill, you could walk into a bar and buy hemp THC-infused seltzers, or pick up gummies or salves from a local boutique.
That’s all under direct threat after a provision to effectively ban hemp-derived THC was slipped into the bill to reopen the government back in November. It sets a one-year timeline before taking effect. Nationally, that means a $28 billion industry supporting some 300,000 jobs is at risk of being decimated.
This may not feel all that important to you if you’re not someone who uses THC or CBD products, but the issue should concern us all. There are negative social, legal, and economic ramifications to such a ban, and it comes at a time when we should be moving towards overall legalization and regulation, rather than in the opposite direction.
There is some movement on this at the state level. Three different bills addressing the issue are coming down the pipeline in the state legislature. Unfortunately, two of the three would either codify the ban or impose impractical and onerous restrictions. The best bet (so far) appears to be a draft bill being circulated by state Sen. Patrick Testin (R-Stevens Point) that would keep hemp-derived THC legal, but with requirements for testing and certification, clear labeling, limits on dosage, and be limited for sale to those 21 and up.
This addresses the health and safety concerns that were the stated reason for the federal ban while providing a practical way forward for the industry. It’s ridiculous that a similar approach wasn’t taken at the federal level — but everything the MAGA-controlled Congress does these days is ridiculous. Our country also has a long history of overblown fear-mongering around all-things marijuana — the side effects of which includes a lack of good, long-term research on its effects and a lack of proper FDA oversight — both things that would go a long ways toward making the industry and its products safer for everyone.
Thanks to the shifting tides of political power in Wisconsin, there’s at least the chance to do better at the state level. Keeping the industry legal and well-regulated is good for consumers who have increasingly turned away from alcohol and are seeking alternatives. It would also help prevent the inevitable growth of a black market for these products, which is the other major effect of making something illegal that people want and/or rely on.
Testin’s bill would be a good first step to righting the ship, but more is needed. Instead of wrangling a needlessly complicated patchwork of laws and loopholes, why not just legalize recreational marijuana as well? Two-thirds of registered voters in Wisconsin support it, according to recent polling by the Marquette University Law School. The state is losing millions in tax and other revenue to our neighbors in Minnesota, Illinois, and Michigan where recreational and medicinal use are now legal. Why not apply the same common sense regulatory framework being proposed for the hemp industry to marijuana? There are plenty of important projects that would benefit from the tens of millions of dollars in tax and other revenue that would be generated by the industry. States with legal cannabis put the money generated toward a wide variety of civic and public initiatives, including restorative investments and, perhaps most importantly, reparations for communities that had previously been disproportionately impacted by drug enforcement actions.
This issue has always felt like such a gimme for lawmakers. Wisconsinites overwhelmingly want and support legalization. It’s a true job creator and revenue generator, at a time when both are greatly needed. Coupled with amnesty for everyone ever convicted of marijuana-related offenses and programs to ensure the industry remains largely locally owned and operated, it’s a win-win. And it’s gotta happen soon. If we’ve learned anything from the past year, it’s that we can’t wait for Congress to do the right thing.
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