Committee hears public testimony on cannabis omnibus DE; industry and patient advocates press competing fixes for hemp beverages, CBD and medical access

House File 16-15 (DE) — the committee's cannabis omnibus policy bill — received an article-by-article walk-through April 2, and the committee took public testimony during a lengthy public-comment period. The DE was divided into three articles: Article 1 (medical cannabis technical changes), Article 2 (adult-use licensing and related provisions, including testing facility licensing variances), and Article 3 (hemp business regulations, including lower-potency hemp beverage licensing).

Ben Johnson of House Research provided a high-level overview. He said the DE pulls together provisions the committee previously considered and includes limited changes to medical program statute (chapter 152) and corrections or technical edits in licensing and hemp regulation. "The House file 16-15 DE is divided into 3 articles. The first article deals with medical cannabis provisions," Johnson said.

Interim Office of Cannabis Management leadership described administrative fixes intended to facilitate licensing rollout and testing capacity. Eric Toppel (interim director, Office of Cannabis Management) told the committee the DE creates a variance for testing facilities, removes an application requirement for two corporate signatures, and makes changes to ensure telehealth access and patient protections in employment, education and housing.

Industry and patient advocates offered competing views in public testimony. Glenn McElfresh of PLIFT and a Hemp Beverage Alliance board member urged the committee to adopt language in the DE that allows a 10-milligram hemp beverage to be labeled as a single 10-milligram serving (rather than two 5-mg servings), citing multi-state compliance problems that discourage brands from launching in Minnesota. "This change permits brands who sell a 10 milligram drink to label that drink as a single 10 milligram serving with only 1 serving per container," McElfresh said, describing the line in the DE.

Patient advocates and medical-industry witnesses also testified on medical program matters but with different emphases. MINCAN (Minnesota Cannabis and Drug Policy Resource Center) supported several DE provisions but urged adjustments — including tying adult patients' dosing plans to registry profiles, expanding civil and criminal protections to visiting patients, and lowering the proposed $10,000 wholesaler license fee for low-potency hemp wholesalers. Registered nurse and CBD retailer Patty Gilk said changes proposed in the DE could reduce the variety of legal nonintoxicating products available in community retail stores and said many senior consumers prefer nonintoxicating products sold in neighborhood stores rather than adult-use dispensaries.

Manufacturers and small-business speakers urged the committee to keep nonintoxicating products on open shelves and to lower proposed wholesale license fees that they said would be prohibitive for small operators. Several speakers urged the committee to consider the commercial impact of changing per-container serving rules.

The committee did not take final action on House File 16-15 on April 2; members were told the bill would be marked up at a later meeting and that public testimony would be available again then.