Legislature(2025 - 2026)
2026-05-17 House Journal
Full Journal pdf2026-05-17 House Journal Page 2699 SB 208 The following was read the second time: CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 208(RES) "An Act relating to the sale and lease of state land for agricultural uses; and providing for an effective date." 2026-05-17 House Journal Page 2700 with the: Journal Page RES RPT HCS(RES) 4DP 4NR 2640 FN2: ZERO(DNR) 2640 Representative Kopp moved and asked unanimous consent that the following committee substitute be adopted in lieu of the original bill: HOUSE CS FOR CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 208(RES) (same title) There being no objection, it was so ordered. Amendment No. 1 was offered by Representative McCabe: Page 1, line 1, following "Act" (title amendment): Insert "relating to industrial hemp;" Page 1, following line 3: Insert new bill sections to read: "* Section 1. AS 03.05.010(a) is amended to read: (a) The commissioner of natural resources shall (1) direct, administer, and supervise promotional and experimental work, extension services, and agricultural projects for the purpose of promoting and developing commercial and noncommercial agricultural industry in the state, including horticulture, dairying, cattle raising, fur farming, grain production, vegetable production, and agricultural products; (2) procure and preserve all information pertaining to developing the agricultural industry in the state and disseminate that information to the public; (3) assist prospective settlers and others to engage in the agricultural industry in the state by providing information about activities and programs essential to developing the agricultural industry and areas in the state that are suitable for agriculture; (4) review the marketing, financing, transportation, and development of agricultural products in the state, with special emphasis on local production, and negotiate for the marketing of agricultural products of the state with federal and state agencies operating in the state; 2026-05-17 House Journal Page 2701 (5) regulate and control the entry in the state and the transportation, sale, or use in the state of plants, seeds, vegetables, shell eggs, fruits and berries, nursery stock, animal feeds, remedies and mineral supplements, fertilizers, and agricultural chemicals to prevent the spread of pests, diseases, or toxic substances injurious to the public interest and protect the agricultural industry against fraud, deception, and misrepresentation; for purposes of this paragraph, the commissioner may require registration, inspection, and testing and may establish procedures and fees; (6) regulate the farming of elk in a manner similar to the manner in which the commissioner regulates domestic animals and livestock, to the extent that is appropriate; (7) adopt regulations relating to industrial hemp, including regulations that (A) specify approved sources or varieties of hemp seed or propagation material to be grown, sold, or offered for sale by an individual registered to produce industrial hemp, including material certified under a federally approved hemp program, federally certified seed scheme, or recognized third-party certifier, without requiring grow-out trials conducted by the department; (B) require testing, paid for by the registrant, for delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol concentration following harvest of the industrial hemp, allowing for independently accredited laboratories and samplers; (C) provide for general production practices to avoid the unintended distribution of industrial hemp seeds by registrants into nonagricultural land; (D) establish an isolation distance [DISTANCES] for the production of industrial hemp grown for certified or seed-purity production of at least 1,000 meters, and recommend isolation distances for the production of other industrial hemp; in this subparagraph, "isolation distance" means the minimum separation required between two or more varieties of the plant (genus) Cannabis for the purpose of keeping the seed pure; (E) permit manufacturing and retail sale of industrial hemp and products made from industrial hemp; (F) establish a registration and renewal procedure for 2026-05-17 House Journal Page 2702 a participant in the industrial hemp program developed under AS 03.05.076; (G) establish a tiered testing frequency based on risk categories developed in regulation that considers crop history and past compliance; (H) allow a harvest window of not more than 30 days after sample collection, with permissible extensions for weather or other good cause; (I) establish tiered grower categories, including a micro-grower category, with scaled reporting, inspection, testing, and fee requirements; (J) eliminate permits for in-state transportation of industrial hemp between registered parties when a shipment is accompanied by a certificate of analysis or other approved shipping documentation; (K) establish corrective-action-plan procedures to enforce an industrial hemp violation that prioritize compliance, include a written notice of the registrant's noncompliance, provide an opportunity for the registrant to cure the noncompliance, and establish objective criteria for escalation, including civil penalties, suspension, or revocation; (8) submit a list of individuals registered to produce industrial hemp under AS 03.05.076 and the expiration dates of the registrations to the Marijuana Control Board and the Department of Public Safety; (9) regulate the labeling of seed that does not comply with the requirements of AS 03.20.130. * Sec. 2. AS 03.05.010(c) is amended to read: (c) The commissioner of natural resources shall notify the Marijuana Control Board and the Department of Public Safety of a person's repeated or knowing violations of state statutes or regulations relating to industrial hemp. Industrial hemp shall be tested using a federally compliant testing method that accounts for measurement uncertainty. Noncompliant industrial hemp is industrial hemp that tests above 0.3 percent delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol on a dry-weight basis [WHEN THE COMMISSIONER ISSUES A STOP ORDER]. The commissioner of natural resources shall (1) [SHALL] issue a stop order to a person 2026-05-17 House Journal Page 2703 [(A) NOT REGISTERED UNDER AS 03.05.076 WHO IS FOUND TO BE PRODUCING A PLANT WITH DELTA-9-TETRAHYDROCANNABINOL; OR (B)] registered under AS 03.05.076 who is found to be producing a plant with delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol over one percent; and (2) allow [MAY ISSUE A STOP ORDER TO] a person registered under AS 03.05.076 who is found to be producing a plant with delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol between 0.3 percent and one percent to retain and recondition, remediate, or convert the plant to a nonintoxicating industrial use before issuing a stop order requiring destruction of the plant. * Sec. 3. AS 03.05.010 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: (e) The commissioner of natural resources may issue enforcement actions for an industrial hemp violation using the corrective-action plan developed under (a)(7)(K) of this section. * Sec. 4. AS 03.05.076(a) is amended to read: (a) Industrial hemp is an agricultural crop in the state. An individual who produces industrial hemp shall apply to the department for registration under this section. Registration is valid for one year but may be renewed. An application for registration or renewal must be on a form prescribed by the department that includes (1) the name and address of the applicant; (2) the address and global positioning system coordinates of the area to be used for the production of industrial hemp; and (3) the applicant's acreage or estimated plant count sufficient to determine the applicant's tiered grower category under AS 03.05.010(a)(7)(I) [A SIGNED STATEMENT BY THE APPLICANT, MADE UNDER THE PENALTY OF PERJURY, AFFIRMING THAT THE APPLICANT (A) HAS NOT BEEN CONVICTED OF A FELONY RELATED TO A CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE IN THIS OR ANOTHER JURISDICTION WITHIN THE 10 YEARS IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE DATE OF APPLICATION; OR (B) WAS LAWFULLY GROWING HEMP BEFORE DECEMBER 20, 2018, AND WAS NOT CONVICTED OF A FELONY RELATED TO A 2026-05-17 House Journal Page 2704 CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE IN THIS OR ANOTHER JURISDICTION AFTER THAT DATE]. * Sec. 5. AS 03.05.076(b) is amended to read: (b) An individual registered under this section may (1) produce industrial hemp, including growing, harvesting, possessing, transporting, processing, selling, or buying industrial hemp; (2) use any propagation method, including planting seeds or starts or using clones or cuttings to produce industrial hemp; (3) retain industrial hemp seeds for the purpose of propagating industrial hemp in future growing seasons [YEARS]; (4) retain and recondition, remediate, or convert any industrial hemp that tests between 0.3 percent and one percent delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol on a dry-weight basis. * Sec. 6. AS 03.05.076(c) is amended to read: (c) An individual registered under this section shall (1) comply with testing standards and procedures established by the commissioner of natural resources by regulation; (2) maintain, for at least three years following the sale or transfer of industrial hemp, records showing (A) the name and address of the person that received the industrial hemp; (B) the amount of industrial hemp transferred; (3) make the records required under (2) of this subsection available for inspection by the department during normal business hours if the department provides at least 10 [THREE] days' notice before inspecting the records. * Sec. 7. AS 03.05.076(d) is amended to read: (d) The department shall (1) establish fee levels for application, registration, and renewal of registration so that the total amount of fees collected under this section approximately equals the regulatory costs for regulating the industrial hemp industry, with reduced or waived fees for micro-growers; (2) annually review each fee level to determine whether the regulatory cost of industrial hemp is approximately equal to the fees collected; (3) notify the Marijuana Control Board and the Department of Public Safety when the department issues a notice 2026-05-17 House Journal Page 2705 for a repeated or knowing [A STOP-SALE ORDER AND ISSUES A] violation [NOTICE] under this section; (4) require an individual registered under this section whose industrial hemp tests over one percent delta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol to destroy the product so that it cannot be used for the purpose of reconditioning other hemp crops or gifted or transferred to another individual other than for the purpose of having the industrial hemp destroyed in full form; (5) issue a notice to an individual for a repeated or knowing violation of state statutes or regulations relating to industrial hemp. * Sec. 8. AS 03.05.076(e) is amended to read: (e) The department may (1) [SHALL] issue a stop-sale order and issue a violation notice to a person who is producing industrial hemp without a current registration; (2) [MAY] adopt regulations regarding approved shipping documentation for the transportation of industrial hemp and eliminate permits for in-state transportation between registered parties; (3) [MAY] conduct random tests and inspections of industrial hemp for delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol concentration produced by an individual registered under this section; random tests and inspections under this paragraph may use risk-based tiers with reduced frequency for low-risk growers, products, or production or testing methods approved by the department in regulation. * Sec. 9. AS 03.05.079 is amended to read: Sec. 03.05.079. Production in violation of delta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol limit. (a) Notwithstanding AS 11.71.040 - 11.71.060, an individual registered under AS 03.05.076 to produce industrial hemp whose product has a delta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol content between 0.3 percent and one percent may retain and recondition, remediate, or convert the product as provided in AS 03.05.076(b)(4). (b) An individual who retains but fails to recondition, remediate, or convert an industrial hemp product described in (a) of this section is guilty of a violation. * Sec. 10. AS 03.05.100 is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 2026-05-17 House Journal Page 2706 (6) "micro-grower" means an individual registered under AS 03.05.076 to produce industrial hemp whose product is cultivated on less than one-quarter of an acre or who has fewer than 200 plants, including indoor or greenhouse production." Page 1, line 4: Delete "Section 1" Insert "Sec. 11" Renumber the following bill sections accordingly. Page 10, following line 5: Insert new bill sections to read: "* Sec. 22. AS 43.61.010 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: (g) The tax imposed by (a) of this section does not apply to industrial hemp produced in compliance with AS 03.05.076, or to a product made from industrial hemp if the product contains not more than 0.3 percent delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol content on a dry-weight basis as determined by testing that complies with the requirements of AS 03.05.010(c). * Sec. 23. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to read: TRANSITION: REGISTRANTS. (a) An individual who held a valid registration under AS 03.05.076 during the period between January 1, 2021, and December 31, 2025, and whose registration lapsed solely as a result of regulatory action by the Department of Natural Resources during the period between January 1, 2024, and December 31, 2025, is eligible for reinstatement following application without paying a renewal of registration fee. (b) The Department of Natural Resources may not require the destruction of industrial hemp or a product made from industrial hemp that is lawfully held by a registrant under (a) of this section if the industrial hemp or product made from industrial hemp satisfies the testing standards in AS 03.05.076(c), as amended by sec. 6 of this Act." Renumber the following bill sections accordingly. Page 10, line 9, following "implement": Insert "secs. 1 - 10, 22, and 23 of" 2026-05-17 House Journal Page 2707 Page 10, line 11: Delete "Section 12" Insert "Section 24" Page 10, following line 11: Insert a new bill section to read: "* Sec. 26. Sections 1 - 10, 22, and 23 of this Act take effect July 1, 2026." Renumber the following bill section accordingly. Page 10, line 12: Delete "sec. 13" Insert "secs. 25 and 26" Representative McCabe moved and asked unanimous consent that Amendment No. 1 be adopted. Objection was heard and withdrawn. There being no further objection, Amendment No. 1 was adopted and the new title follows: HOUSE CS FOR CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 208(RES) am H "An Act relating to industrial hemp; relating to the sale and lease of state land for agricultural uses; and providing for an effective date." The Speaker stated that, without objection, HCS CSSB 208(RES) am H would be held in second reading to the bottom of the calendar.