08 Oct Notice of public comment period regarding Kansas commercial industrial hemp program
A public hearing will be conducted at 10:00 a.m. on December 7, 2020, in the 1st floor meeting room 124 of the Kansas Department of Agriculture, 1320 Research Park Dr., Manhattan, Kansas to consider the adoption of proposed regulations. Due to the public health concerns posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the hearing proceedings will also be available via video conferencing system. Anyone desiring to participate in the public hearing via video conference must pre-register at: https://kansasag.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMpdu6qqTwqGtYU5 Y Uk22Znv4hc-lnrOt.
Individuals planning to attend in person, please contact Ronda Hutton via email at ronda.hutton@ks.gov or telephone at (785) 564-6715. Due to social distancing restrictions, seating for those attending the hearing in person will be limited and will be provided on a first come, first serve basis.
This 60-day notice of the public hearing shall constitute a public comment period for the purpose of receiving written public comments on the proposed rules and regulations. All interested parties may submit written comments prior to the hearing to the Secretary of Agriculture, 1320 Research Park Dr., Manhattan, Kansas 66502, or by e-mail to ronda.hutton@ks.gov. All interested parties will be given a reasonable opportunity to orally present their views on the adoption of the proposed regulations during the hearing. In order to give all parties an opportunity to present their views, it may be necessary to request that each participant limit any oral presentation to five minutes. These regulations are proposed for adoption on a permanent basis. A summary of the proposed regulations and their economic impact follows:
Due to the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which removed hemp from the federal Controlled Substances Act, and the Commercial Industrial Hemp Act (“Act”), which allows the commercial production of Industrial Hemp in Kansas, the Kansas Department of Agriculture is proposing rules and regulations for a Commercial Industrial Hemp Program.