House Business and Labor approves interim study on kratom to distinguish natural products from synthetics

A Montana House Business and Labor panel voted to advance House Joint Resolution 60, an interim study that would direct lawmakers to examine the effects and regulation of kratom and report findings to the next legislature.

Representative Schomer sponsored the resolution and told the committee that previous legislation (House Bill 407) failed in appropriations and left open questions about how to regulate kratom. He said a study would allow lawmakers to “get the facts out” and distinguish between naturally derived products and synthetic isolates.

Isaac d. Hammer, chief operating officer of Kava Roots in Laurel, testified in support of the study. Hammer told the committee that natural kratom has long been consumed in Southeast Asia and in the United States and that recent concerns focus on synthetic derivatives. He disputed two factual items in the draft resolution, saying the correct national user estimate is about 24,000,000 Americans rather than 1,700,000 and asserting that kratom is consumed orally — “It is only consumed orally, typically as a tea, tincture, capsule, or leaf,” he said.

Jesse Luther, appearing for Kava Roots, explained the regulatory gap the committee was being asked to study: kratom is not regulated at the national level by the FDA and, because it is not an FDA-approved food product, Montana’s adoption of the FDA-based food code (codified in Title 50 at the DPHHS level) creates uncertainty about how kratom tea houses should be inspected and licensed.

Deborah Pitassy of the Montana Beer and Wine Distributors Association urged a measured approach, suggesting Montana’s alcohol-control framework might provide a model that balances commerce and consumer protections. Scott Bollinger of the American Creative Association also supported the study as a way to gather information for future legislation.

Committee members asked technical questions about supply chains, whether kratom can be smoked or vaped, and which agencies enforce food licensing. Mr. Hammer said local sanitarians and county health departments were constrained by the state’s food-code adoption and that compliant tea-house businesses faced inspections that could lead to closure absent statutory clarification.

During executive action, the committee accepted a conceptual amendment offered by Representative Buttry to remove the word “smoked” from the draft language, to replace a numeric estimate with 24,000,000, and to make minor drafting edits. The amendment was read into the record and approved. The committee then voted to pass HJ 60 as amended; the resolution passed out of committee for possible interim study review by legislative council.

The Legislative Council will compile interim-study requests and assign studies based on ranking and available budgets; if HJ 60 is prioritized it will be assigned to an interim committee that can scope the work more broadly. The committee record shows no opponents or informational witnesses present during the hearing.