TN legislator considers legalized hemp farming

A certain crop is now drawing the attention of some Tennessee legislators, but its name often raises eyebrows.

Senator Frank Niceley (R-Strawberry Plains) says hemp could boost local agriculture.

"Why not?" he said from the front porch of his own farm Monday evening. "It's not against the law to own it. It's not against the law to import it from Canada or China. It's just against the law for a farmer to raise it."

Unlike its cousin, the marijuana plant, the hemp seed contains almost none of the THC chemical that lead to a high.

"It's not marijuana, you can't smoke it," Sen. Nicely said. "But you can
make thousands of products from it, and we import about half a billion dollars of it a year."

Knoxville-based company Hemp Monkey sells many of those products.

"We do a lot of natural products," said co-owner Amber Keirn. "Hemp seeds, hemp soaps and lotions, candles, clothing."

Keirn listed the benefits of the hemp, including how few pesticides it requires to grow, its low-impact on the soil, and its durable fabric products.

She said the challenge to getting others on board is differentiating between hemp and marijuana.

"It's a lot of education, too, because hemp has that connotation," Keirn said.

Hemp was grown legally in the United States until the early 1900s, when competition with other industry, coupled with its association with marijuana prompted the government to change the law. Some states, including Kentucky, have passed legislation legalizing industrial hemp farming.

After more research, Sen. Niceley says he may draft legislation in the future. Until then, he will watch Kentucky's process closely.

"Sometimes it's easy to use those other states for model legislation," he said. "If it works there, it might work here."

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Congressman wants committee to study marijuana laws

Tennessee Congressman Steve Cohen is calling for marijuana law reform after a new study suggests disparity in the number of pot possession arrests in Shelby County. An arrest rate of African Americans that's higher than in most other parts of the nation. Cohen said, "There have always been disparities in marijuana arrests between African Americans and Caucasians." Congressman Steve Cohen has authored a bill to create a National Commission on Federal Marijuana Policy. He explains why,"To study our marijuana laws, look at states that have medical marijuana, those that have legalized it like Colorado and Washington, see how they're doing." Meanwhile, the American Civil Liberties Union report "The War on Marijuana: Black and White," found blacks made up 83% of all pot possession arrests in Memphis and Shelby County in 2010. "What's shocking is Shelby County is about the highest in the country," Cohen said. The report finds blacks in Tennessee are four times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites, Mississippi blacks are 3.9 times more likely and Arkansas blacks are three times more likely. Cohen said, "Yet the use of marijuana, studies show, is equal between the races." Cohen, a longtime advocate to legalize marijuana, says these kinds of arrests drain taxpayer dollars. The report found in 2010, taxpayers in the tri-state area spent nearly 73 million dollars policing, litigating and imprisoning all races for marijuana possession. Cohen said, "An arrest and/or conviction, particularly conviction, makes it harder to get scholarships, makes it harder to get housing, makes it harder to get a job for the rest of one's life." Cohen also wants to study tax revenues from legalized marijuana, savings from the criminal justice system and how legalization affects people. "What it'll do to give people an opportunity to go forth in their productive lives, rather than have a scarlet letter, an M so to speak, on their chest forever," said Cohen. Those against legalizing marijuana say current laws protect you from drugged drivers and workers using marijuana. The bill will be heard in several committees before it's heard by the House or Senate.

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