Our Illinois Hemp Lawyers have written extensively on the first new agricultural commodity of the 21st century – hemp – over on our sister website focusing on our cannabis law practice – www.CannabisIndustryLawyer.com.

Illinois Hemp Farmers & Processors Need a Business Lawyer

For answers on the confusing term “agent”  discussed below – you can find the 2nd Notice Filing and Responses to Public Comments – Linked Here. 

Call Cannabis Attorney Thomas Howard at (309) 740-4033.

Approximately one month after the public comment period ended for the first draft of the Illinois Hemp Regulations, the State has released its final version.

Now you can read them yourself

– Hemp Rules Link

We are going to discuss the new rules, which could be the final rules.  Currently, the State calls them the Industrial Hemp Rules With Second Notice Edits.

For more about the procedure of releasing regulations, or rules, after a law is passed – watch the video above.

Illinois Hemp Application Rules

In Illinois, two main hemp applications are covered by the rules – the cultivators’ license, and the processors registration.

The first draft of the rules required any person that either grew (cultivated) or manufactured (processed) hemp needed a license.

However, the first draft of the Rules did not make it clear if each and every employee of the company growing or processing hemp required a separate license.

Think if each and every employee at the local bar required a liquor license – how much more expensive would your drink order become?!

But, unlike your drink order, CBD rich hemp cannot make you intoxicated.  So when reading the newly revised rules.  We caught the attention of a few new terms and what they may mean.

New Changes to Hemp Rules

The newly added terms in the Hemp rules are in red line – and one of them is the new term of art – an “agent.”

An “Agent” is :

“Agent” means any family member, employee, contracted employee, or farmhand of a licensed or registered hemp cultivator or processor.

This is a new term under the rules.  We did not use the red-line version right here, but if you look at the rules link – you will see it in red. This new “Agent” term creates a very burdensome and expensive reading of the rules.  Let’s explain.

Section 1200.20 General Provisions

The general provsions of Illinois Hemp’s regulations provides that:

No person shall cultivate (or process) industrial hemp in the State without first receiving an Industrial Hemp Cultivation License (or registration to process) from the Department.

The next questions is, okay, if each person requires a license or registration to either grow or process hemp in Illinois, then how is “Person” defined under the regulations.

A “Person” defined under Hemp Regulations in Illinois.

You can find the answer in the definitions section – a “Person” is defined as:

“Person” means any individual, partnership, firm, corporation, company, society, association, the State or any department, agency, or subdivision thereof, or any other entity, or the agent thereof.

Does each Employee Require a Hemp License or Registration?

Because each “person” that handles or grows hemp requires a license or registration to do so in Illinois, and the definition of the term “person” includes the newly defined term “Agent,” then we have a legal conclusion confronting us.

Does each employee – or even family member – count as an agent, which is a person – who all require a license or registration to either grow or process hemp?

Agent should me one license (or registration) per business location.  If you read the comments to why they added the term “agent” it was to help address the issue of licensing all employees and provide clarity – but as you see it does not happen by only reading the rules, you also have to read the commentary on the rules to get the intent of the agency.

How to Start Your Illinois Hemp Application

The vast majority of the information required to complete your business’ Illinois hemp license application is available online. 

We wait for Illinois to produce their official form of application to be able to help our clients make sure their application is correct.

We are also in close contact with the State of Illinois regarding the scope of the licenses and registrations to see if the newly introduced terms may come onto the scene.  For now it appears that Illinois will be starting to take hemp applications very soon.

So call now to start your Hemp application – right now.