A bill to legalize industrial hemp production in South Dakota passed out of the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee last week and is now headed the Senate floor.
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem continues to ask legislators to hold off on passing the bill until federal regulations have been ironed out, but stopped short of threatening a veto.
Noem says she spoke with US Ag Sec. Sonny Perdue about it while she was in Washington, DC, last weekend.
Noem says the bill “gravely concerns” her.
The 2018 federal farm bill legalized cultivation of industrial hemp nationally, but US Department of Agriculture officials say the rules governing the crop won’t be ready for the 2019 planting season.
Noem says she’s had discussions with legislative leadership about an amendment that would win her support for the bill, but declined to elaborate. If the bill passes the Senate without changes, it would head to Noem’s desk.
(DRG)