With the federal recriminalization of hemp THC products set to take effect before the end of this year, a company that sells cannabis-infused drinks is inviting customers to “take a stand against prohibition” and buy a round of beverages for their members of Congress.
Herb Light’s “Cheers Against Prohibition” campaign, launching on Wednesday, will let customers who are purchasing a 12-pack of THC drinks add a six-pack for their congressional lawmakers.
The company says it will handle delivery to lawmakers and will include a letter urging support for a pending bill in Congress to keep hemp THC drinks federally legal under a new system of regulations.
Herb Light is also launching a new 1980s-styled ad rigging on President Ronald Reagan’s famed “Morning In America” spot.
“It’s morning again in America. Today, more men and women will wake up without hangovers or regrets because they were able to drink a non-alcoholic beverage with a responsible amount of hemp-derived THC last night,” the ad says. “Tomorrow, all that might change because on December 12th, it will be illegal to buy beverages with more than 0.4 milligrams in retailers or online—eliminating an entire industry and hundreds of thousands of jobs.”
Sending THC drinks to members of Congress, the spot says, will allow them to “spend tonight enjoying a responsible, non-alcoholic THC beer”—presumably giving them a personal experience that will encourage them to support averting the currently planned prohibition from taking effect.
Hemp derivatives with less than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC on a dry-weight basis were federally legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill that President Donald Trump signed during his first term in office. But late last year, the president signed new legislation containing provisions that redefined hemp to make it so only products with 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container would remain legal after November 12.
Now, however, under provisions included in a funding bill Trump signed last month, the effective date of the ban for most products is being pushed back to December 11 to give lawmakers more time to craft regulations for hemp derivatives. There is a carve-out, however, to allow the recriminalization on November 12 of synthetic cannabinoids “that are not capable of being naturally produced by a Cannabis sativa L. plant.”
“Most consumers don’t even know there’s a federal ban in the works—much less that it goes into effect in a matter of weeks—so we wanted to call attention to that for the entire category,” Gordy Sang, co-founder of Herb Light, said in a press release. “It’s like we’re doing a prohibition sequel, even when the first prohibition movie was awful. Zero stars.”
The company’s press release says it will be “relatively easy” for Herb Light itself to adapt to the new federal restrictions, if they take effect as written.
Its drinks currently only contain 1 milligram of THC, whereas other companies’ beverages typically have 5-10 milligrams or more. If the planned policy goes into effect without further changes, Herb Light will begin manufacturing a 0.4 milligram version of its drink to stay compliant.
“While it makes sense for a super-low dose beverage like Herb Light to offer an even more super-low dose 0.4 MG version, it doesn’t make as much sense for brands with higher doses,” Jon Schiff, co-founder of Herb Light, said. “Instead of banning it completely and eliminating an entire multi-billion dollar industry that creates hundreds of thousands of jobs and gives adults a safer/healthier beverage alternative to socialize with, just regulate it responsibly.”
The company’s buy-THC-drinks-for-lawmakers campaign—which it says will be available nationwide in states that currently allow THC beverages to be purchased—comes as Members of Congress are debating how and whether the crop’s derivatives should be regulated as an alternative to prohibition.
Several Republican lawmakers recently spoke to Marijuana Moment about the kinds of rules they would like to see enacted to keep hemp THC products legal.
A number of lawmakers from both chambers and both parties have filed or are circulating a growing number of bills to prevent the scheduled federal recriminalization of hemp THC drinks and other products. Until now, none of those proposals have gained traction with congressional leaders.
For example, Reps. Beth Van Duyne (R-TX) and Greg Landsman (D-OH) filed a bill to keep hemp THC drinks legal while taxing and regulating them like alcohol.
Rep. James Comer (R-KY), who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is circulating legislation that would delay a planned federal ban on hemp THC products and institute some regulations—including packaging requirements, testing rules and age limits.
Separately, Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY), filed a lengthier proposal to prevent the federal recriminalization of hemp THC products and put in place a number of regulations for manufacturing, labeling, sales and taxation of hemp-derived products, including an age limit of 21.
Trump and White House officials repeatedly pressed Congress to delay, alter or reverse the ban in recent months.
In a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) in June, for example, White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought said the Trump administration wants lawmakers to “ensure the fair treatment of hemp products”—specifically citing Barr’s earlier amendment to keep many hemp products legal while adding regulations and taxes.
The administration “welcomes the opportunity to work with the Congress to, at a minimum, update the statutory definition of final hemp-derived cannabinoid products to allow Americans to benefit from access to appropriate full-spectrum CBD products,” OMB separately said in June, “while preserving the Congress’s intent to restrict the sale of products that pose serious health risks.”
Also in April, the president himself urged congressional lawmakers to again redefine hemp to avoid recriminalization of full-spectrum CBD products.
“I am calling on Congress to update the Law to ensure that Americans can continue to access the full-spectrum CBD products they have come to rely on, and that help them, while preserving Congress’s intent to restrict the sale of products that pose Health risks,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
“We must get this done RIGHT and FAST, especially for those who saw that CBD helps them,” he said. “Plus, I am told it will also help our GREAT FARMERS, who we love, and will always be there for.”
Some members of the alcohol industry have also urged Congress to regulate, rather than ban, hemp products.
The National Restaurant Association recently sent a letter urging congressional leaders to delay the federal recriminalization of hemp THC beverages and replace it with a regulatory framework that “ensures consumer safety while meeting growing market demand” for the products as an alternative to alcohol.
Major retailer Target, meanwhile, recently moved to expand its sales of hemp THC drinks into more states.
Meanwhile, the hemp product issue has proved controversial within the cannabis reform movement.
The Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) last week sent an action alert asking its supporters to pressure Congress to reverse the scheduled ban on hemp THC products and institute a system of regulations for all cannabinoids as an alternative to criminalization.
A former MPP staffer who now works for the American Trade Association for Cannabis and Hemp (ATACH), pushed back in an op-ed for Marijuana Moment, however, arguing that “the charade of hemp intoxicants must end” and that “sneaking in the back door with synthetic drugs nobody asked for is not the path to legalization.”
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