The Beer Institute has unveiled guiding principles to address the proliferation of intoxicating hemp and cannabis products. 

The organization said the beer industry believes the decision to legalize these products should be made by American voters, state legislatures and federal policymakers. As policy discussions unfold, the Beer Institute aims to have these principles serve as a framework addressing four key areas: revenue, regulation, responsibility and research. 

“For decades, America’s brewers and beer importers have demonstrated their commitment to fostering a culture of moderation and the responsible consumption of our products, all within a robust regulatory and taxation system,” said Brian Crawford, president and CEO of the Beer Institute. "The current patchwork of intoxicating hemp and cannabis laws and regulations do not meet the same standards to which the beer industry willingly adheres.”  

The Beer Institute issued the following principles:

• The legalization of consumable cannabis products is for American voters, state legislatures and Congress to decide.
• The Beer Institute supports efforts underway by lawmakers to close an unintended federal loophole that is enabling the proliferation of unregulated intoxicating hemp products across the country, including those containing synthetically derived THC.
• Government experts have publicly highlighted the lack of scientific data regarding the consumption of intoxicating hemp and cannabis products.
• Intoxicating hemp and cannabis products are fundamentally different than beer and the taxation of them by government entities should reflect these stark differences just as governments at all levels in the United States have consistently reaffirmed the different tax treatment between beer, wine and hard liquor.

The Beer Institute specified other guidelines relating to its main principles, including:

• It supports the establishment of a federal excise tax rate on intoxicating hemp and cannabis, with the tax rate set higher than the highest rate for any beverage alcohol product.
• Regulators at the federal, state, and local levels should prohibit co-location of the sale of alcohol beverages in the same retail venues as intoxicating hemp and cannabis products, if legalized, and further, to avoid consumer confusion, intoxicating hemp and cannabis products, if legalized, should only be sold in dispensaries.
• It supports a “zero tolerance approach” for THC-impaired driving until proper field measurement technology and protocol are widely available and guidance on safe levels of consumption is established.
• It calls on the intoxicating hemp and cannabis industry to dedicate resources to develop the use of roadside testing equipment by local and state law enforcement to detect the presence of intoxicating hemp and cannabis in drivers.
• It supports prohibitions on public consumption of intoxicating hemp and cannabis products that mirror those presently in place for tobacco.
• It supports potency testing and warning label requirements for intoxicating hemp and cannabis products, if legalized.
• It supports efforts to ensure that packaging and advertising for intoxicating hemp and cannabis products, if legalized, do not primarily appeal to those under 21.
• Even if intoxicating hemp and cannabis products are legalized, the Beer Institute supports continuing the federal prohibition against combining intoxicating hemp and cannabis with alcohol.