RD318 - Annual Report on the Status and Progress of the Industrial Hemp Research Program - November 1, 2015


Executive Summary:
The 2015 Session of the Virginia General Assembly enacted the Industrial Hemp Law (Law) (Va. Code § 3.2-4112 et seq.), which authorizes the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) to establish and oversee an industrial hemp research program that will be directly managed by public universities. Since the enactment of the Law, VDACS has received a Controlled Substance Importer Registration from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, entered into Memoranda of Understanding with three public institutions of higher education to conduct industrial hemp research, and established the process by which the agency will license industrial hemp growers who will participate in the research conducted by the three public institutions of higher education.