New Mexico Senate committee advances bill that would pave way for commercial hemp production

By Milan Simonich
Source: taosnews.com

A bill to legalize marijuana previously went down in flames, but a separate measure for commercial use of hemp in New Mexico breezed through its first legislative test Tuesday.

The Senate Conservation Committee voted 9-0 to advance the Industrial Hemp Farming Act. Committee members voted to move the bill forward without recommendation because it was modified a bit just before the hearing began.

State Sen. Cisco McSorley, the sponsor, said Congress already has approved a Farm Bill that permits states to proceed with research projects on hemp.

Hemp is still illegal under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act for general use, but McSorley said that is likely to change soon.

"We're anticipating the federal government to OK production for commercial use in the next couple of months," said McSorley, D-Albuquerque.

He said the Legislature is "virtually unfettered" in putting the state Department of Agriculture in charge of research, and then allowing it to license commercial growers if and when Congress removes hemp from its list of illegal drugs.

A dozen people at the Conservation Committee hearing testified in favor of McSorley's bill. No one opposed it.

Hemp fibers can be used in an array of products, including carpeting, construction materials and household goods. One woman at the hearing showed senators a handsome tan briefcase that was made from hemp.

Unlike marijuana, the hemp bill is all about business, not recreational drug use, said state Rep. Bealquin Gomez, D-La Mesa, who testified before the committee.

"I'm here in support of agriculture," Gomez said.

Sen. Bill Payne, R-Albuquerque, initially was skeptical about advancing the bill with hemp still classified as an illegal substance by the federal government. Payne, though, relented after a staff member of the state Department of Agriculture said 19 states already were proceeding with hemp research, as allowed by Congress.

McSorley said his bill would position New Mexico farmers to grow a valuable crop once all the federal restrictions are lifted.

Jessica Gelay of the New Mexico Drug Policy Alliance was among those who endorsed McSorley's bill. Without it, she said, "New Mexico farmers are simply missing out because we have outdated drug laws."

The bill would allocate $100,000 for the regents of New Mexico State University, the state's land grant university, to establish a seed bank and seed certification program for hemp. An additional $50,000 would be appropriated under the bill for the state Department of Public Safety to train officers to identify industrial hemp.

A similar bill for agricultural use of hemp has been introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. Antonio "Moe" Maestas, D-Albuquerque.