Colorado voters approve adjustable THC limits for hemp

Colorado voters on Tuesday made it easier to change the definition of industrial hemp.

State residents approved a constitutional amendment, Amendment X, to allow state lawmakers to change the THC limits for cannabis that can be considered hemp and not marijuana.

Previously, the state constitution defined hemp as cannabis with no more than 0.3% THC, the same level as in federal law.

That THC threshold remains in place after Colorado’s vote Tuesday.

But the amendment’s victory means that Colorado, the nation’s top-producing hemp state, can adjust hemp’s THC limit up or down to match federal standards without going to the voters to change the state constitution.

Hemp supporters in the Colorado Legislature suggested the change earlier this year to make the state nimbler if national hemp standards change.

Opponents had argued that politicians should not be trusted to adjust hemp definitions.