A bipartisan pair of U.S. House lawmakers has introduced legislation that would create a federal regulatory system for hemp-derived THC beverages while allowing their continued sale to adults.

The Beverage Regulatory Parity Act, introduced today by Representatives Beth Van Duyne (R-TX) and Greg Landsman (D-OH), would allow hemp beverages containing up to 5 milligrams of total intoxicating THC per serving to be sold to those 21 and older.

The legislation would establish a three-tier distribution structure for the products modeled after the system long used for alcoholic beverages. Manufacturers would sell to wholesalers, who could then sell the products to retailers. Manufacturers would generally be prohibited from selling directly to retailers, and businesses could not hold interests in multiple tiers of the system.

Under the proposal, hemp THC beverages would also be subject to a new federal excise tax of 8 cents for every milligram of intoxicating THC they contain. That is lower than the 10-cent-per-milligram tax included in an earlier version of Van Duyne’s proposal.

The potency standard has also been revised. An earlier draft would have allowed up to 5 milligrams of delta-9 THC per serving, while the newly introduced legislation instead applies the 5-milligram limit to total intoxicating THC. The bill defines a single-serving container as 12 fluid ounces.
The legislation would specifically exempt compliant hemp beverages from the forthcoming federal limit of 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container, allowing qualifying beverages to remain federally legal despite the broader restrictions scheduled to take effect later this year.

To qualify, products would have to be nonalcoholic beverages made with naturally occurring cannabinoids from hemp cultivated in the United States. Synthetic cannabinoids and other compounds intended to mimic intoxicating cannabinoids would not qualify, nor would tinctures, isolates, powders or distillates. Products would also have to be packaged and labeled in the United States.

Federal oversight would involve the Treasury Department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The bill would classify qualifying hemp-derived beverages as food under federal law, while TTB would oversee the three-tier distribution system, permits and many of the labeling and advertising requirements.
Labels would be required to disclose cannabinoid content and the number of servings while including warnings regarding impairment, use by children and pregnant consumers, potential interactions with medications and the possibility of failing a marijuana drug test.

The federal framework would not prevent states or local governments from adopting stricter regulations. The bill explicitly allows jurisdictions to impose requirements beyond the federal standards or prohibit hemp-derived beverages altogether.

The proposal comes as the hemp beverage industry faces a major change in federal law later this year. Legislation enacted in November 2025 established a new definition of legal hemp that, absent further congressional action, will restrict finished hemp-derived products to no more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC and certain related cannabinoids per container.

The bill was introduced just two days after the Senate approved H.R. 6500 in a 90 to 6 vote, a federal spending bill that would postpone most of those restrictions from November 12 until December 11. The House must still approve the legislation before it can be sent to President Donald Trump.

Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), who supported keeping the delay in the bill, has said the short extension is intended to give Congress and the Trump administration additional time to negotiate more comprehensive hemp legislation. Cruz previously called the approach “common sense,” saying it gives Congress and the administration time to negotiate a more substantial bill.

Van Duyne had circulated an earlier hemp beverage proposal in June that similarly sought to preserve a federal market for low-dose THC drinks, but that draft had not yet been formally introduced and included several different provisions, including the higher tax rate and a delta-9-specific potency limit.

The newly introduced bipartisan measure would instead establish a dedicated federal framework for hemp THC beverages, regulating them more similarly to alcohol rather than allowing them to fall under the upcoming restrictions affecting the broader intoxicating hemp market.