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Senate bill would ban delta-8, delta-9 from public school buildings, school-sponsored events

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Senate bill would ban delta-8, delta-9 from public school buildings, school-sponsored events

Mar 24, 2023 | 2:30 pm ET
By Greg Childress
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Senate bill would ban delta-8, delta-9 from public school buildings, school-sponsored events
A bill filed Thursday in the state Senate would ban the use of hemp products such as Delta-8 and Delta-9 from school buildings, grounds and school-sponsored events.

Senate Bill 366 titled “Ban Delta-8 & Delta-9 on School Grounds” would prohibit  hemp products and their “synthetic counterparts that are designed, manufactured, or sold to be inhaled or otherwise consumed, including the substances commonly known as “delta-8,” “delta-9,” and “CBD.”

Delta-8 is a hemp-derived product that’s manufactured from the cannabidiol that naturally occurs in hemp. Users report highs after use that are milder than those from marijuana. Delta-9 is a more potent version.

Delta-8 and delta-9 are legal in North Carolina for residents 21 and older.

The products are legal due to a loop hole created when the 2018 Farm Bill was passed. Hemp became legal and could be grown as long as it contained less than 0.3 % Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is the chemical responsible for most of marijuana’s psychological effects.

SB 366 would require school boards to adopt policies prohibiting the use of hemp products by any person in school buildings, in school facilities on school campuses or any other school property.

Hemp products would be allowed in instructional or research activities as long as they are conducted or supervised by a faculty member and does not include smoking, chewing or ingesting the hemp product.

Paramedics were called to a middle school in Mooresville last May after a student brought delta-9 THC gummies to a middle school and some of the students became after ingesting the substance.

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration has warned consumers that delta-8 THC products have not been evaluated or approved by the FDA for safe use and may be marketed in ways that put the public health at risk. Ingesting the substances can lead to hallucinations, vomiting, tremor, anxiety, dizziness, confusion and loss of consciousness, the FDA warns.

SB 366 was filed by Sen. Michael A. Lazzara, an Onslow County Republican, Sen. Jim Perry, a Lenoir County Republican and Sen. Tom McInnis, a Republican from Moore County.