Report: Hemp crop insurance guarantee may see US Senate action

A guarantee about hemp crop insurance may be added to a stalled disaster-aid bill pending in the U.S. Senate.

According to The Washington Post, hemp advocate and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is trying to add language to the legislation to ensure hemp will be eligible for federal crop insurance.

McConnell steered hemp legalization to the desk of President Trump last year and has since been trying to speed hemp’s inclusion in services available to other crops.

In April, McConnell wrote to four federal banking and financial institutions asking them to open financial services to the hemp industry.

The Post, which did not give details of how McConnell’s proposed crop-insurance guarantee would work, noted that the fate of the overall bill is unclear.

The $17 billion disaster bill has been hung up for months in a fight between congressional Democrats and the president over aid to Puerto Rico.