The White House is continuing President Donald Trump’s call to fix a federal law imposing a forthcoming ban on intoxicating hemp products, this time through a request from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
OMB Director Russell T. Vought sent U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., the request on June 24 for $87.6 billion in supplemental funding to “address urgent needs” related to Operation Epic Fury – the Trump administration’s military attack on Iran – and other “critical needs” such as the “Ebola outbreak in Central Africa and supporting hardworking American farmers.”
One-tenth of the budget request for American farmers would specifically go to those in Florida to rebound from “crippling” winter storms.
On behalf of Trump, Vought also urged Johnson to include in the funding request either a regulatory package for intoxicating hemp products or to delay the November 2026 implementation of a federal ban on such products.
“Furthermore, the administration requests additional authorities that it strongly supports,” Vought wrote. “These authorities include revising the federal regulation of hemp to ensure the fair treatment of hemp products in a manner consistent with Amendment #54 offered to H.R. 8646 in the House Rules Committee, or, at minimum, an extension of implementation of the regulatory framework put in place by Section 781 of Public Law 119-37.”
Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., offered Amendment No. 54 in May to House Resolution 8646, the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Related Agency Appropriations Act of 2027.
Barr’s proposal would overhaul the federal government’s forthcoming restrictions on hemp-derived cannabinoid products – including the forthcoming ban on products with more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container – with a taxed and regulatory framework.
Titled the “Lawful Hemp Protection Act,” Barr’s 25-page proposal aims to “promote responsible industry growth, protect consumers and reinforce confidence in lawful hemp commerce.” It would redefine hemp to include a 1% delta-9 THC threshold on a dry-weight basis, but that delta-9 concentration would be measured on the finished consumer product (not on raw, floral hemp material or work-in-progress material) and would exclude cannabinoids not found in or capable of being naturally produced by the plant.
Barr’s proposal also includes provisions the congressman hopes will address consumer health and safety concerns, as well as concerns related to youth use and exposure.
“Many Americans, including veterans and seniors, rely on consumer hemp products for wellness,” Barr’s proposal states. “Ensuring that such products are consistently manufactured, accurately labeled and domestically sourced is essential to maintaining public trust and protecting consumers.”
Meanwhile, Section 781 of Public Law 119-37 is the actual intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoid product ban that Trump signed in November 2025 as part of a deal to end the government shutdown. The law also redefined hemp to include a 0.3% total THC threshold to close a “hemp THCA flower” loophole that existed in the delta-9 THC definition from the 2018 Farm Bill.
The law, once implemented this November, will also prohibit hemp-derived products containing cannabinoids synthesized outside the plant (i.e., delta-8 THC) or that are unnatural (i.e., HHC).
In December, when Trump signed an executive order directing his administration to reclassify cannabis, he also directed his White House staff to work with Congress on a regulatory pathway for Americans to safely access nonintoxicating, full-spectrum CBD products.
In April, after Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Mehmet Oz set up and launched a CBD pilot program – allowing doctors to recommend hemp-derived CBD products with up to $500 per year in coverage for those products – Trump said, “more must be done.”
“I am calling on Congress to update the law to ensure that Americans can continue to access the full-spectrum CBD products they have come to rely on, and that help them, while preserving Congress’s intent to restrict the sale of products that pose health risks,” Trump wrote on his social media platform in April. “We must get this done RIGHT and FAST, especially for those who saw that CBD helps them.”
RELATED: Trump Calls on Congress to Fix Law Imposing a Forthcoming Hemp Product Ban
Now, the White House OMB is putting pressure on Johnson, the same House Speaker who reportedly opposed Trump’s cannabis rescheduling plan and whom Trump reportedly ignored after phoning him into a meeting on the matter in mid-December.
In this week’s letter to Johnson, Vought asked the speaker to consider either option: Barr’s regulatory package or delaying the implementation.
Under the former option, “This request would update the statutory definition of final hemp-derived cannabinoid products to allow Americans to benefit from access to appropriate full-spectrum CBD products while preserving the Congress’s intent to restrict the sale of products that pose serious health risks,” Vought’s request states under the urgent supplemental authorities section.
