Illinois agrees to delay enforcing hemp ban for some businesses amid lawsuit
Illinois has agreed to temporarily delay enforcement of its expected restrictions on sales of intoxicating hemp products for a number of businesses that sued to stop it, according to a court filing.
Starting Thursday, the state is set to ban the sale of intoxicating hemp products other than at cannabis dispensaries. The products have been legal but largely unregulated for years. The reprieve for the Illinois Healthy Alternatives Association, an industry group that says it represents hundreds of businesses, and several other hemp businesses that sued is expected to last until at least Nov. 19.
The association and the other hemp businesses sued last week in a last-ditch effort to stop the law from being implemented. Hemp industry advocates have said the restrictions could shut down businesses and limit customer access.
The development comes as businesses across Chicago have advertised “last call” sales on THC drinks and other hemp-derived products that consumers have become accustomed to seeing in convenience stores and other retailers.
The association represents more than 250 businesses employing more than 5,000 people — about a fifth to a quarter of the industry statewide, said Craig Katz, president of the IHAA. A full list of member businesses wasn’t immediately available.
Defendants in the lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, agreed not to enforce the state restrictions on sales for those members and a handful of other named plaintiffs until Nov. 19, when the case is next scheduled for court. The court could extend the temporary delay beyond Nov. 19.
The named defendants include Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, the director of the Illinois State Police and the heads of the state departments of Agriculture, Financial and Professional Regulation, Revenue, and Public Health.
Gov. JB Pritzker signed the restrictions into law earlier this year, saying they closed an “intoxicating hemp loophole.”
“Instead of letting an ambiguous marketplace keep putting people at risk, Illinois is taking action to protect consumers of all ages, especially children, from misleading packaging and labeling,” Pritzker said at the time.
The Tribune’s Robert McCoppin contributed.