Sen. Rand Paul vows to back any solution that stops the federal ban on Kentucky hemp products

FRANKFORT, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) – A federal law set to take effect Nov. 12 will reclassify many legal hemp products as Schedule I controlled substances, effectively banning them and leaving some Kentucky farmers facing significant financial losses.

Chuck Tackett, a hemp farmer in Georgetown, is among those stuck with product he cannot sell. He still has inventory from last year’s harvest, plus this year’s crop, with no buyers in sight.

“There’s nobody buying right now. So, we’re sitting with last year’s product and there’s a lot of labor involved in this. This is a hand planted crop,” Tackett told LEX News earlier this summer.

Only Congress can resolve the issue, and two of Kentucky’s federal elected officials have proposed competing solutions.

Sen. Rand Paul was the first to offer a fix. He wants to give each state the authority to regulate its own hemp products, pointing to steps Kentucky has already taken.

“The Kentucky State legislature came forward with laws to regulate hemp. The drinks that have some of the THC in – you have to be 21 years old, you have to do it in a liquor store. I think those are reasonable regulations and I’d like to let Kentucky regulate it instead of completely prohibiting it,” Paul said.

Rep. Andy Barr has proposed a different approach, calling for a federal regulatory framework for hemp products.

While Paul and Barr are pushing separate paths, Paul said he will back whatever legislation keeps the Kentucky hemp industry alive.

“Anything that eliminates the ban – I’ll be for,” Paul said.