Amendment X is concerning the definition of hemp in the Colorado constitution.
Type: Change in state constitution. 55 percent required for passage.
The issue: Should Colorado remove the definition of industrial hemp from its state constitution, and instead refer to state and federal law?
Currently, the state constitution defines industrial hemp as cannabis with trace amounts of THC, limited to no more than .3 percent. But with Congress now looking to regulate it as a crop instead of as an illegal drug, state lawmakers want to make sure the state’s farmers aren’t put at a competitive disadvantage by being forced to follow two different sets of rules. Deleting it from the constitution would allow lawmakers to define industrial hemp in state law and make adjustments as needed if federal regulations change.
The ramifications: This is a speculative change. Congress may do nothing — or may adopt the same definition Colorado already uses. But lawmakers want to be ready just in case.
For more: Read the referred measure and ballot analysis.
— Brian Eason, Special to The Colorado Sun
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