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Federal hemp law

Federal hemp definition change: December 11, 2026 — what changes in each state

From December 11, 2026, the federal definition of hemp counts total THC, including THCA, and final hemp products with more than 0.4 mg of total THC per container are no longer hemp. One part starts earlier, on November 12, 2026: products with cannabinoids the plant cannot naturally produce. Below: both dates, sourced to the statute, and what each state’s own rules say today.

Last reviewed October 22, 20263 federal sources · 51 state rowsCite this pageNot legal advice

The short answer

Cannabinoids the plant cannot make stop counting as hemp

Hemp-derived cannabinoid products, intermediate or final, that contain cannabinoids that are not capable of being naturally produced by the Cannabis sativa L. plant are excluded from the federal definition of hemp. From this date they are classified as marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act. 1 2

Statute: 7 U.S.C. 1639o(1)(C)(ii)(I) and (iv)(I), as amended by P.L. 119-37 § 781. P.L. 119-103 § 2019 applies only these two paragraphs until December 11, 2026.

The rest of the new definition takes effect

  • Hemp means Cannabis sativa L. with a total THC concentration, including THCA, of not more than 0.3% on a dry weight basis (before: 0.3% delta-9 THC). 1
  • Excluded from hemp: viable seeds from a plant above 0.3% total THC; products with cannabinoids that occur in the plant but were synthesized or manufactured outside the plant. 1
  • Excluded: intermediate hemp-derived cannabinoid products with more than 0.3% combined total THC and other cannabinoids with similar effects, and intermediate products marketed or sold as a final product or directly to consumers. 1
  • Excluded: final hemp-derived cannabinoid products with more than 0.4 milligrams combined total per container of total THC (including THCA) and other cannabinoids with similar effects. 1
  • Industrial hemp (grown for stalk, fiber, grain, seed oil and other non-cannabinoid uses) is expressly included in the definition. 3

The original date was November 12, 2026 (365 days after P.L. 119-37 was enacted on November 12, 2025). P.L. 119-103, enacted September 2, 2026, moved everything except the November 12 exclusion to December 11, 2026. 1 3

Still open

  • P.L. 119-37 directs the FDA to publish lists of cannabinoids that occur naturally in the plant, THC-class cannabinoids and cannabinoids with similar effects, plus guidance on the term “container.” As of September 28, 2026, CRS reported that these lists had not been published. 3
  • Bills in Congress would delay the new definition by two more years (H.R. 7024, H.R. 7010, S. 3686) or repeal it (H.R. 6209); the House-passed FY2027 agriculture appropriations bill (H.R. 8646) contains no delay. None of these had become law when CRS updated its report. 3
  • We will update this page if Congress changes either date.

State by state

The federal change applies in every state. What it means locally depends on state law: some states already ban the products the new definition excludes, others license or tax them. The table shows what our dataset records for each state today, checked against official state sources. “Not confirmed” means we have not confirmed that value on an official government page, so we do not state it.

State rules as recorded in the CTU state cannabis law dataset (September 28, 2026), with Illinois corrected October 15, 2026 and 21 values re-checked on official state sources on October 22, 2026. Numbers link to the official source for each value. States change these rules often; check the state hemp program before you act.

StateDelta-8 THCTHC-OSmokable hempProgramSources
AlabamaMedical onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Not legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
AlaskaRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 1Not legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
ArizonaRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 1Not confirmedState hemp program 2[1] [2]
ArkansasMedical onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Not legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
CaliforniaRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not confirmedNot legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
ColoradoRecreational + medicalNot legal in hemp products (above trace limits); licensed marijuana stores only 1Not legal 1Not confirmedState hemp program 2[1] [2]
ConnecticutRecreational + medicalLicensed cannabis stores only (21+) 1Not legal outside licensed cannabis stores 1Legal 2State hemp program 2[1] [2]
DelawareRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 1Not confirmedState hemp program 2[1] [2]
District of ColumbiaRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 2Not legal 1State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
FloridaMedical onlyLegal 1Legal 1Legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
GeorgiaMedical onlyLegal 1Legal 1Not legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
HawaiiMedical onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Not legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
IdahoNo cannabis programNot legal 1Not confirmedNot legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
IllinoisRecreational + medicalYes (21+ only; reclassified as cannabis on Nov 12, 2026) 1Legal 2Legal until Nov 12, 2026; then smokable/vapeable hemp products banned 3State hemp program 4[1] [2] [3] [4]
IndianaLow-THC / CBD onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Not legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
IowaLow-THC / CBD onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Not legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
KansasLow-THC / CBD onlyLegal 1Not confirmedNot legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
KentuckyMedical onlyLegal 1Not legal 1Not legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
LouisianaMedical onlyLegal, 21+; max 5 mg total THC/serving, 40 mg/package; no hemp flower 1Not legal 2Not legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
MaineRecreational + medicalLegal 1Legal 1Not confirmedState hemp program 2[1] [2]
MarylandRecreational + medicalLegal 1Not legal 2Legal 3State hemp program 4[1] [2] [3] [4]
MassachusettsRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not confirmedNot legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
MichiganRecreational + medicalLegal 1Not legal without a state cannabis license (licensed market only) 2Legal 3State hemp program 4[1] [2] [3] [4]
MinnesotaRecreational + medicalLegal 1Legal 1Legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
MississippiMedical onlyNot confirmedNot confirmedNot legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
MissouriRecreational + medicalLegal until Nov 12, 2026; then licensed marijuana facilities only 1Legal until Nov 12, 2026; then banned outside licensed marijuana facilities 1Legal until Nov 12, 2026; THCA flower then licensed marijuana facilities only 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
MontanaRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 1Not legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
NebraskaMedical onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Not confirmedState hemp program 2[1] [2]
NevadaRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 1Legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
New HampshireMedical onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Legal (≤0.3% delta-9 THC); from Jan 1, 2027 total THC incl. THCA ≤0.3% 1State hemp program 1[1]
New JerseyRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 1Only very-low-THC flower (<0.3% total THC and <0.4 mg THC per container); THCA flower = cannabis (licensed only) 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
New MexicoRecreational + medicalLegal 1Legal 1Legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
New YorkRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 1Legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
North CarolinaLow-THC / CBD onlyNot confirmedNot confirmedNot confirmedState hemp program 1[1]
North DakotaMedical onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Legal 1State hemp program 1[1]
OhioRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 2Not legal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
OklahomaMedical onlyNot confirmedNot confirmedLegal only if combined delta-9 THC + THCA ≤0.3% (from Nov 1, 2026) 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
OregonRecreational + medicalNot legal (artificially derived delta-8 banned since July 1, 2022) 1Not legal 1Legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
PennsylvaniaMedical onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Not confirmedState hemp program 2[1] [2]
Rhode IslandRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 1Legal 1State hemp program 1[1]
South CarolinaLow-THC / CBD onlyNot confirmedNot confirmedNot confirmedState hemp program 1[1]
South DakotaMedical onlyNot legal 1Not legal 1Not legal 1State hemp program 1[1]
TennesseeLow-THC / CBD onlyLegal 1Not confirmedLegal 1State hemp program 2[1] [2]
TexasMedical onlyNot legal 1Not legal 2Legal 3State hemp program 1[1] [2] [3]
UtahMedical onlyLegal 1Not legal 1Not legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
VermontRecreational + medicalNot legal 1Not legal 1Legal only if ≤0.3% total THC (incl. THCA); THCA flower prohibited outside licensed cannabis 2State hemp program 1[1] [2]
VirginiaRecreational + medicalRestricted: hemp products max 2 mg total THC (incl. delta-8) per package; above that = marijuana 1Not confirmedLegal 2State hemp program 2[1] [2]
WashingtonRecreational + medicalNot legal outside licensed cannabis stores 1Not legal outside licensed cannabis stores 1Not legal 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]
West VirginiaMedical onlyLegal 1Not legal 2Legal 3State hemp program 4[1] [2] [3] [4]
WisconsinLow-THC / CBD onlyNot confirmedNot confirmedNot confirmedState hemp program 1[1]
WyomingLow-THC / CBD onlyNot legal 1Not legal 2Legal only if ≤0.3% total THC (post-decarboxylation) 2State hemp program 3[1] [2] [3]

Federal sources

  1. P.L. 119-37, Division B, § 781 (enacted Nov. 12, 2025): new statutory definition of hemp, 7 U.S.C. 1639ogovinfo.gov (U.S. Government Publishing Office) · read October 22, 2026
  2. P.L. 119-103, Division B, § 2019 “Section 781 extension” (enacted Sept. 2, 2026)govinfo.gov (U.S. Government Publishing Office) · read October 22, 2026
  3. Congressional Research Service, IF13136, “Changes to the Statutory Definition of Hemp and Implications for Agricultural Policy,” updated Sept. 28, 2026congress.gov (Congressional Research Service) · read October 22, 2026

State sources are linked in each row of the table.

Cite this page

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APA

Cannabis Training University. (2026, October 22). Federal hemp definition change: December 11, 2026 — what changes in each state. https://cannabistraininguniversity.com/laws/federal-hemp-definition-change-2026/

MLA

“Federal hemp definition change: December 11, 2026 — what changes in each state.” Cannabis Training University, 22 Oct. 2026, cannabistraininguniversity.com/laws/federal-hemp-definition-change-2026/.

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Not legal advice. General education from Cannabis Training University, summarizing the federal statute, the Congressional Research Service and official state sources as of October 22, 2026. For a decision about a product or a business, read the official sources and talk to a licensed attorney in your state.

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