Source: Peggy Kirk Hall and Ellen Essman, OSU Extension
Ohio’s newly created hemp program is one step further toward getting off the ground. On October 9, the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) released its anxiously awaited proposal of the rules that will regulate hemp production in Ohio. ODA seeks public comments on the proposed regulations until October 30, 2019.
There are two parts to the rules package: one rule for hemp cultivation and another for hemp processing. Here’s an overview of the components of each rule:
1. Hemp cultivation
The first rule addresses the “cultivation” of hemp, which means “to plant, water, grow, fertilize, till or havest a plant or crop.” Cultivating also includes “possessing or storing a plant or crop on a premises whre the plant was cultivated until transported to the first point of sale.” The proposal lays out the following regulatory process for those who wish to cultivate hemp in Ohio.
Cultivation licenses. Anyone who wants to grow hemp must receive a hemp cultivation license from the ODA. Licenses are valid for three years. To obtain a license, the would-be hemp cultivator must submit an application during the application window, which will be between November 1 and March 31. The application requires the applicant to provide personal information about the applicant, and if the applicant is a business, information about who is authorized to sign on behalf of the business, who will be primarily responsible for hemp operations and the identity of those having a financial interest greater than ten percent in the entity. The cultivation license application will also seek information about each location where hemp will be grown, including the GPS coordinates, physical address, number of outdoor acres or indoor square footage, and maps of each field, greenhouse, building or storage facility where hemp will grow or be stored. Cultivators must pay a license application fee of $100, and once licensed, an additional license fee of $500 for each growing location, which the rule defines as “a contiguous land area or single building in which hemp is grown or planned to be grown.” All applicants and anyone with a controlling interest in the hemp cultivation business must also submit to a criminal records check by the bureau of criminal identification and investigation.
Land use restrictions. The proposed rules state that a licensed hemp cultivator shall not: