On October 13, 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 153 (SB 153)  into law. SB 153 requires the state’s hemp regulations to be in full compliance with federal law legalizing industrial hemp. The new state law, which was widely supported by the California hemp industry, ensures that the state will submit a plan for hemp and hemp-derived products to the US Department of Agriculture by May 1, 2020. The submission of a state plan is expected to ease regulatory uncertainty for California hemp farmers, processors, and distributors as well as those supporting the hemp industry. The Company’s joint venture SoCal Hemp is fully compliant with current laws authorizing the farming of hemp, and will also be in full compliance with the SB 153 regulations when they become effective in 2020.

Graham Farrar, the CEO of SoCal Hemp, made the following statement about the signing of SB 153: “California

“California is a leader in the U.S. cannabis industry and has taken another positive step forward by ensuring its laws support California hemp’s competitive advantage in the booming worldwide market for this important crop. With regulatory progress continuing, we look forward to transitioning into commercial production of sun-grown, organic, California hemp and hemp-derived products in 2020.”

To learn more about SB 153, visit these summaries provided by the bill’s sponsors: https://www.votehemp.com/press_releases/gov-newsom-signs-hemp-legislation-sb-153/ and https://wilk.cssrc.us/content/wilks-industrial-hemp-measure-becomes-law.