SB 6-INDUSTRIAL HEMP PRODUCTION  4:14:49 PM CHAIR GIESSEL announced consideration of SB 6, sponsored by Senator Hughes. It proposes to introduce industrial hemp back into Alaska as an agricultural product allowing it to be developed into value-added products. 4:15:35 PM At ease 4:18:05 PM SENATOR HUGHES, sponsor of SB 6, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, said her district includes quite a bit of agricultural land. So, last spring former Senator Ellis had a bill on this topic. She got a call from a highly respected farmer in her area and former Borough Mayor Larry DeVilbiss expressing interest in taking hemp out of the criminal statutes and putting it into the agricultural statutes. During the course of summer and fall in town halls and other forums, she heard various folks express interest in that, as well, and heard from other farmers and innovative thinkers around the state. The federal Farm Act was signed in August and guidelines are being rolled out now. Today she is presenting the initial version and as more is learned about the federal guidelines, it will get updated. SENATOR HUGHES said this is one more economic opportunity for farmers and Alaskans. Interestingly, hemp was legally grown up until 1937 in our state. It has 25,000 industrial applications. Centuries ago it was used for canvas for ship sails and covered wagons, and it was used for the paper on which the Declaration of Independence was written. Federal law has changed and a number of states have also changed their laws to allow its growth. Europe was a little bit ahead of us and prints bibles on hemp paper, because it doesn't yellow. It's a good option for biofuels and construction materials. In fact, a gentleman in Homer is building a model home using multiple hemp products for drywall, insulation, and plywood. Farmers are interested in it as a great feedstock for animals. 4:21:41 PM BUDDY WHITT, staff to Senator Hughes, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, provided an overview of SB 6. He explained that the bill has three sections in its present form. The first section under Title 11 adds a paragraph that defines industrial hemp that matches the federal definition, which is: "All parts and varieties of the plant, cannabis sativa L, containing no more than .3 percent THC." Federal studies have shown that 1 percent THC is the threshold for it to actually be present enough to cause hallucinogenic side effects. The .3 percent threshold, well below that, is what the federal government used as a definition for industrial hemp, therefore separating it completely from the drug, marijuana. 4:23:32 PM Section 2 was added so that under Title 11 it would be an affirmative defense to keep one from being prosecuted under Title 11, Sec. 71.33.060 (If you had industrial hemp and you were caught and charged with manufacturing, delivering, or possessing with intent to manufacture or deliver.) Finally section 3 states that an individual manufacturing, delivering or displaying industrial hemp is not required to register. 4:24:28 PM MR. WHITT said he would next cover what needs to be changed in state statute in order to match the federal statutes. The federal Farm Act of 2014, the Omnibus Appropriations Act of 2016, and the U.S.D.A Statement of Principles relating to the Farm Act of 2014, which was enacted August 12, 2016 are the main federal pieces that are referred to in looking at the changes needed in this bill. They say basically that states may participate in an industrial hemp pilot program that is designed to study the growth, cultivation, and marketing of industrial hemp within their state. The state department responsible for agriculture is the one that is responsible for oversight and regulatory authority over industrial hemp. Registration is required by the Division of Agriculture in Alaska's case and is recommended to include but not limited to: the name of the authorized manufacturer, the period of the license/registration that is being given, and the GPS coordinates for the "grow" for identification by a DPS officer flying over it, which avoids misidentification of hemp as marijuana from the air. The act also defines industrial hemp and it allows those who are authorized under an industrial hemp pilot program, institutions of higher education, or those who are employed under contract through an institution of higher education to grow and cultivate industrial hemp. Section 3 of the bill says that registration is not required and would not meet the federal guidelines. CHAIR GIESSEL said she will work with Senator Hughes to craft a committee substitute for SB 6. 4:28:11 PM SENATOR HUGHES commented that it has been a delight to work with the Division of Agriculture Director, Arthur Keyes, and Rob Carter at the Plant Materials Center on this issue. SENATOR COGHILL said some of the questions he will be asking along the way are because of what has been done with legalizing marijuana in Alaska, and asked if SB 6 will have a fire wall between the growing of industrial hemp and marijuana because one has federal rules that are permissive and the other one has federal rules that forbid such actions. He also asked what amounts would be tested: batches or individual plants, and remarked that the testing could be expensive if it isn't done right. SENATOR HUGHES said his second question was a good one for the Division of Agriculture experts, and because SB 6 is going to the Judiciary Committee, that would be a great place to look at his other concern about posing as a hemp grower but actually growing marijuana. However, her understanding is that it would then fall under the criminal statutes as not being licensed. The mapping coordinates will also provide a check. ARTHUR KEYES, Director, Division of Agriculture, Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Anchorage, Alaska, responded that Rob Carter has some good information on this issue. 4:31:04 PM ROB CARTER, Manager, Alaska Plant Materials Center, Division of Agriculture, Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Anchorage, Alaska, responded that truly testing to differentiate between industrial hemp and recreational marijuana would require an expensive machine, but luckily the commercial laboratories that are now in place for the recreational marijuana industry could very easily do the test for a nominal fee. But fronting industrial hemp as recreational marijuana would be difficult when you actually come down to the agronomic principles and practices of growing each. The planting densities are much different; industrial hemp is planted very similar to grain with a grain drill, and the seed and row spacing are more similar to corn. This would be very unproductive in the recreational cannabis world. Physiologically, the recreational marijuana growers are very specific in growing strains that are high in THC, and those are specifically females. On the industrial hemp side for seed production you want both females and males. So, anyone who tried to grow industrial hemp as a ruse for recreational marijuana would end up with some pretty poor product. He just didn't think it would be attempted. SENATOR COGHILL said last year he heard that the growing season for industrial hemp could actually suit Alaska very well and asked if that is true. MR. CARTER answered that since the real research on the production of hemp stopped between 1932 and 1937, he didn't have a lot of agronomic practices that bind non-production of industrial hemp in Alaska. That is why the division believes it is so important to give this crop an opportunity. Looking at Alaska's dramatic day lengths and photo periods, this plant should produce very well on a biomass basis. There are questions involving the production of seed and the photo period required by that genus and species, but that won't be known until it has been trialed. However, they expect great results for the production of fiber and plant products and the thousands of other uses. 4:34:53 PM SENATOR VON IMHOF said the plants look alike but they are chemically different and one of the letters says they are different in terms of stalks versus flower seeds, and asked if that is another difference. MR. CARTER answered yes. He explained that a lot of that is very dependent on the plant density within the acreage that it's planted. The tighter plants are planted together the more upright they grow; they are phototropic so they try to grow toward the sun. He said the recreational marijuana plants planted outside in California are probably planted on six-foot centers and six to ten feet between each row, where a hemp field is going to look more like corn or an extremely tall cereal grain. 4:36:10 PM CHAIR GIESSEL opened public testimony on SB 6. 4:36:29 PM FRANK TURNEY, representing himself, Hempsters, Fairbanks Alaska, supported SB 6. He said their files should include copies of the first and second resolutions passed in Fairbanks in support of industrial hemp along with other related letters of support. Creating a hemp industry would boost the economy and create jobs. He mentioned meeting Jack Bennett at the Fairbanks Energy Conference who started building a hemp house with mud in Homer. "Nobody that I know is going to smoke industrial hemp. They would be coughing themselves and choking, believe me," he said. 4:38:26 PM JOHN BRADING, representing himself, Fairbanks Alaska, supported SB 6. He said on November 14, 2011, Fairbanks Councilman Hilling introduced Resolution 4497 urging the Alaska State Legislature and executive branch to make expressly legal the cultivation of industrial hemp in the State of Alaska. A second supporting resolution was introduced in February 2, 2012. MR. BRADING said hemp and marijuana are essentially different varieties of the same plant. Hemp is used when the plant is grown cane-like for its fiber, seed, oil, and herbs. Industrial hemp's THC content is too low to produce a high. Today hemp is used for thousands of different products ranging from textiles, paper, building materials, food products, and cosmetics. He said hemp is popular because it can be grown easily without harmful pesticides and fertilizers; its deep root system prevents soil erosion and retains soil fertility making it an ideal rotation crop. Hemp fiber is one of the strongest and most insulating and absorbent of all natural-occurring fibers. It is used in the oil industry to absorb oil spills. Hemp produces more pulp paper than timber on a sustainable basis and can be used for every quality of paper. Hemp seeds are high in protein and contain a polyunsaturated oil, which is rich in the essential fatty acids. CHAIR GIESSEL asked him to wrap up and to email the rest of his comments to her office and she would distribute it to committee members. 4:41:41 PM EMBER HAYNES, representing herself, Denali Hemp Company, Talkeetna, Alaska, supported SB 6. She and her husband have been creating balms and lotions using hemp seed oil for about 10 years and have seen a change in the views of their customers over the years. Alaska is prime right now; everyone is looking for healthy alternatives. They are excited to have this opportunity for Alaskans to be able to grow hemp. They would love to feed hemp leaves to their livestock. 4:43:43 PM BRUCE SHULTE, representing himself, Anchorage Alaska, supported SB 6. He spends much of the summer flying over the MatSu Valley and sees a lot of fallow land and making it more productive would be fantastic. He said Section 2's affirmative defense in the event of prosecution harkens back to an earlier version of another type of legislation a few years ago, and while the intent is noble, his concern is that a farmer growing hemp could be raided, have their crops destroyed, and their material seized and go a long way down the road and stand a lot of legal fees before they would be able to take advantage of an affirmative defense. So, in rewriting this bill, he asked them to consider removing hemp entirely from the list of classified materials to avoid that particular legal stumbling block. 4:45:24 PM MICHAEL DRUCE, Owner, Summer Peonies, Sterling, Alaska, supported SB 6. He said that growing peonies is a labor of love, require a large upfront investment, are labor intensive and take several years before a profit is realized. On that note he is looking for another way to profit from the land he has, but he also believes our state must support new industries aggressively. 4:46:49 PM JACK BENNETT, representing himself, Homer, Alaska, supported SB 6. He is building a model home made with industrial hemp insulation material that is made in just a handful of shops in the United States. As a construction material, just one product replaces formaldehyde-based OSB plywood, sheetrock, fiberglass insulation, and house-wrap. It will lower heating costs by 70 percent, and the life cycle of these homes is hundreds of years. He said data indicates that two and a half weeks in a 100-day harvest produces enough of the woody core construction material to build a 1,000-square foot shell in 8 days depending on how many laborers worked on it. He presented a model home at the World Energy Conference in Fairbanks and wants to do a pilot home in rural Alaska that has a 6,000-home shortage. MR. BENNETT said this may not be the solution for affordable housing, but it is a solution. He represents a commercial manufacturer that owns North America's largest piece of machinery called a decorticator that separates the industrial hemp fiber from the woody core. The fiber sold out to an automotive partner. He said the State of Indiana is working on a facility to design and manufacture automobiles with hemp plastics, both interior and exterior. They are a formaldehyde- replacement to carbon fiber. At the end of the car's lifecycle the ingredients are 100 percent biodegradable. He had presented it to petroleum companies as an oil spill cleanup method that is five times more absorbent than polypropylene technology. CHAIR GIESSEL held public testimony on SB 6 open and invited everyone to submit their testimony in writing. [SB 6 was held in committee.]