The Rhode Island House Corporations Committee has scheduled a public hearing and possible vote for May 15 on legislation that would prohibit the sale of beverages containing hemp-derived delta-9 THC unless sold through licensed cannabis retailers.
The bill, introduced April 25 by Reps. Scott Slater, Grace Diaz, Brandon Potter, John Edwards, David Bennett and Michelle McGaw, aims to regulate the growing market of psychoactive hemp beverages by restricting their availability to adult-use and medical cannabis channels.
According to legislative findings in the measure, the unregulated sale of such products presents public health and safety risks and threatens to undermine the state’s existing cannabis regulatory framework.
The proposal would amend the Rhode Island Cannabis Act to prohibit the sale, possession, and distribution of any beverage infused with hemp-derived delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), except when approved and dispensed through licensed cannabis establishments regulated by the state’s cannabis control commission.
Violators would face civil penalties up to $500 per violation, product seizure, and potential license suspension for repeat offenses. The measure also directs the cannabis control commission, in consultation with the Department of Health, to issue rules and regulations for enforcement.
If approved by the committee and passed by the General Assembly, the law would take effect immediately.
