Council urges action on unregulated Delta-8 market; OMA to pursue legislative options

Council members at the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority advisory meeting pressed the agency to do more to curb sales of unregulated hemp-derived products such as Delta-8 and Delta-10 and to help local law enforcement enforce existing prohibitions.

Council member Randy Hendricks described reports that 13- and 14-year-olds obtained unregulated products at convenience stores in Duncan, Oklahoma, and urged OMA to seek expanded authority to regulate those products. Sheriff Tommy Johnson told the council he would support efforts to give law enforcement clearer guidance and authority.

"There are rules and regulations that this industry follows and then, you know, we certainly appreciate that because from a law enforcement perspective, we are trying to navigate this process too," Sheriff Johnson said. "What we can and can't do, how we can and can't enforce — I think that will be critical for our industry, critical for your industry as well." (Sheriff Tommy Johnson)

Agency leaders said they will take the matter as an action item to discuss with the legislature and the governor's office, including prior offers to the legislature that OMA regulate these products. The chair also pointed to federal activity: staff noted bills introduced in both chambers — including legislation by U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell and Rep. Andy Harris — that would close the 2018 farm-bill loophole that some vendors rely on to market hemp-derived intoxicants.

"Just yesterday, Senator Mitch McConnell introduced a bill in The, US Senate Appropriations Committee that would close the farm bill loophole completely," the chair said, urging council members to monitor federal developments. The chair cautioned that the bills face a long path but said they could change the legal landscape nationally if enacted.

Council members asked OMA to pursue state-level changes if federal action stalls. The agency confirmed it will raise the issue with the governor's office and pursue legislative options to give the agency or enforcement partners clearer authority over unregulated products and out-of-state sellers that ship into Oklahoma.

The council did not adopt new rules at the meeting; members asked staff to return with legislative strategies and with suggestions for how to provide law enforcement with practical guidance and letters that might prompt enforcement activity by local authorities.

The chair closed the discussion by noting the topic will be an action item and that OMA staff will continue conversations with the governor's office and lawmakers.