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Farm Bill 2026: Where Hemp and THCA Stand After Committee Markup
Published April 22, 2026 · Source: Congress.gov
Farm Bill 2026: Where Hemp and THCA Stand After Committee Markup
As of April 2026, the Farm Bill reauthorization is in active markup in both chambers of Congress, with hemp definitions — including how the law treats THCA — among the most contested provisions. No final language has been adopted, and the 2018 Farm Bill remains the governing federal framework.
Washington, D.C. — April 22, 2026. Lawmakers continued markup of the 2026 Farm Bill reauthorization this week, with hemp and intoxicating-cannabinoid provisions emerging as one of the most-amended sections of the draft.
The 2018 Farm Bill defined “hemp” as cannabis containing 0.3% or less delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol by dry weight. That delta-9-only threshold is what allowed the current THCA flower market to develop: pre-decarboxylation, raw tetrahydrocannabinolic acid is not delta-9 THC, so flower testing under the delta-9 limit can ship interstate as legal hemp. The 2026 reauthorization process is now the most direct opportunity Congress has had to revise that definition.
Several committee drafts and member amendments target the definition directly. Some replace the delta-9 threshold with a “total THC” calculation — delta-9 plus 0.877 multiplied by THCA — which would functionally end the federal-legal status of most THCA flower currently sold online. Other amendments preserve the existing definition but add new restrictions on consumable hemp products, intoxicating thresholds per serving, age-gating to 21+, and prohibitions on synthetically converted cannabinoids.
As of this writing, no single approach has cleared either the House Agriculture Committee or the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee. Congressional staff sources cited by Marijuana Moment and Hemp Industry Daily indicate that hemp language is being negotiated in parallel with crop insurance, SNAP, and conservation provisions, any of which could delay floor action.
Industry trade groups including the U.S. Hemp Roundtable and the Hemp Industries Association have publicly opposed total-THC language. State attorneys general from a coalition of 21 states have, in contrast, written to congressional leadership urging Congress to “close the loophole” and clarify that intoxicating hemp products are not what the 2018 statute intended.
What it means for consumers
Until Congress passes a new bill and the President signs it, the 2018 Farm Bill remains the federal definition. THCA flower that meets the delta-9 ≤0.3% threshold continues to be federally legal hemp, though state laws vary widely — see our state-by-state map for current rules in your state.
If a total-THC definition does pass, expect a transition period in the final law (the 2018 Bill included one) and significant litigation. Consumers in restricted-status states like Tennessee and California are already operating under stricter state rules that would not change either way.
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Original source: Congress.gov