The amendment to the farm bill, proposed by Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.), is far more modest than a Senate effort by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to fully legalize the crop for industrial purposes. Miraculously, despite last-minute lobbying against it from the DEA, the amendment passed by a vote of 225-200. But the Board wanted some certainty, so Polis introduced an amendment to the farm bill that would legalize cultivation in colleges and universities for research purposes. (The term "industrial hemp" is also used in this context.) Industrial hemp, defined as a particular strain of cannabis with very low levels of THC, is produced in some 30 countries for use in a wide variety of fiber and textile products.
– It's looking more and more likely that US farmers will be getting back into the hemp-growing business. The latest hopeful sign for advocates came when the House passed an amendment that would make it legal for universities to grow hemp for research purposes—an important step if farmers ever hope to make it a successful agricultural crop, reports the Wonkblog at the Washington Post. The bad news is that the amendment was part of the larger farm bill, which unexpectedly failed. But sponsor Jared Polis of Colorado says he's so encouraged by the 225-200 vote that he will tack the hemp amendment onto some kind of agricultural bill in the near future, or even make it a standalone measure. What he and other advocates—including Mitch McConnell, from farm state Kentucky—are talking about is industrial hemp, which has low levels of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana. It can be used in the manufacture of a wide variety of projects, but the DEA remains worried about its use as a drug. In fact, the Huffington Post obtained the talking points that the DEA circulated to members of Congress as it tried to kill the farm bill amendment. They seemed to fall on deaf ears.