Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Agriculture, Rural Development, Energy and Water Development, Financial Services and General Government, Interior, Environment, Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2022

Floor Speech

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Mr. SCHRADER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak in support of my amendment to ask the FDA to move forward with rulemaking on cannabidiol. Despite the 2018 farm bill being signed into law legalizing cannabidiol, hemp farmers, including those in my home State of Oregon, have faced economic burdens from the regulatory uncertainty by lack of action.

We have legalized the sale of hemp derivatives like CBD, but the marketplace adoption has not taken off like Congress and hemp farmers alike expected. Lack of clarity in legal purchasing of CBD is a big part of the problem.

The FDA has the authority to conduct the necessary rulemaking to establish a regulatory pathway for CBD as a dietary supplement and food ingredient.

This amendment, with my colleague Representative Griffith, calls on the FDA to proceed in doing so, as the livelihoods of hemp farmers and safety of consumers across the country reside in the hands of the agency. There is no reason for the FDA not to be moving forward since the 2018 farm bill.

To that end, I have also introduced with Representative Griffith H.R. 841 on a bipartisan basis. My bill will require the FDA to do what they have the authority to do and should have done already to craft the necessary rules and guidance to regulate CBD as a dietary supplement.

No regulatory system is perfect, but congressional intent has been clear on hemp and CBD. The livelihoods of the farmers and agriculture jobs hang in the balance. It is long past time the FDA and Congress move forward with making CBD legal and safe for consumers.

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