On Aug. 4, the North Carolina House declined to vote on a bill that would ban most hemp THC products; it remains in committee

On Aug. 4, 2026, Republicans in the North Carolina House decided against holding a vote on House Bill 328, legislation that would ban most hemp and THC products in the state, WUNC News reported. The bill, titled "Regulate Hemp-Derived Consumables," remained in the House Rules Committee that evening after it was left off the day's calendar, according to Carolina Journal.

Starting in November, the bill would make any product containing more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container a Schedule VI controlled substance, which would make it illegal under the same drug laws governing marijuana, matching pending federal rules, according to WUNC. Carolina Journal reported that the bill would also outlaw products containing synthetic or chemically converted cannabinoids, prohibit the sale or delivery of any hemp-derived consumable product to someone younger than 21, and bar underage possession. Beyond hemp, the legislation would regulate kratom, prohibit synthetic kratom products and add xylazine to the state's Schedule III controlled substances, the outlet reported.

The North Carolina Senate adopted the bill's conference report 37-6 on July 2, according to the General Assembly's bill record. Because conference reports cannot be amended on the House floor, the House must either adopt the agreement, which would send the bill to Gov. Josh Stein, or send it back for more negotiation, Carolina Journal reported. The House had voted 95-18 in April not to accept the Senate's rewrite of the bill, which sent it to a conference committee, according to the bill record.

The decision followed a day of lobbying at the Legislative Building. Hundreds of hemp industry workers and supporters called for the bill to be replaced with regulations requiring buyers to be 21 or older, and some retailers closed their shops and sent employees to the legislature, WUNC reported. A coalition of hemp businesses estimated that the state's hemp industry generates $3.2 billion a year and supports 16,000 jobs, according to Carolina Journal. Dozens of law enforcement officers and prosecutors attended a news conference with several House Republicans in support of the bill, WUNC reported, and seven law enforcement and criminal justice organizations had called the conference report a "high priority" in a July 27 memorandum, according to Carolina Journal.

House Speaker Destin Hall said that while most legislators see a need for hemp regulations, there was "a lot of disagreement about what to do, and concerns about maybe the bill as written is too broad, and so there's just not the time to deal with that while we're in session right now," according to WUNC. He said he planned to appoint a committee to study the issue more closely in the coming months, the outlet reported.

Gov. Stein criticized a separate provision on kratom. "For some reason, the bill also legalizes kratom, an opioid-like substance sometimes called gas station heroin, and fails to include any meaningful age restrictions," Stein said in a social media post, according to WUNC.

Later developments: As of Oct. 17, 2026, the General Assembly's website still listed the bill's last action as a July 30 re-referral to the House Committee on Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House, with no later action recorded. Carolina Journal reported in August that the bill would remain eligible for consideration during the legislature's post-election sessions in November. Separately, Public Law 119-103, a federal funding law signed Sept. 2, delayed most of the new federal hemp restrictions to Dec. 11, 2026.

This report summarizes published reporting and official records and is not legal advice.