Trump Signed Bill Ending Government Shutdown, Including Major Federal Hemp Ban

President Donald Trump has signed a government spending bill that both ends the longest government shutdown in U.S. history and sets in motion a major reversal in hemp policy.

The legislation was passed by the Senate on Monday, with the House following suit on Wednesday.

The legislative change imposes restrictions on hemp-derived products, while recriminalizing most of the sector under federal law.

Under the bill, after Nov. 13, 2026, any hemp product that contains more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container, regardless of its packaging, will be classified as illegal Schedule I marijuana, becoming illegal under the Controlled Substances Act, as reported by Marijuana Moment.

The measure includes all THC isomers, such as delta-8 and delta-10, as well as THCA, to name a few. As a result, the ban would target low-dose beverages, tinctures, gummies, vapes, and other hemp innovations that ended up on shelves after the 2018 Farm Bill.

Cannabinoids that are synthesized or manufactured outside the plant, those that cannot be naturally produced by Cannabis sativa L., intermediate products sold directly to consumers, and any cannabinoid marketed as having effects similar to THC, will be prohibited under the new law.

The hemp sector now has a one-year window to raise questions, especially in states where the hemp market is regulated and harbours a number of hemp operators.

“For farmers, brands, and consumers who embraced full-spectrum hemp, adult-use cannabinoid beverages and edibles, the potential outcome represents more than regulatory change; it’s a setback for consumer choice, progress and opportunity,” Kim Sanchez Rael, Azuca CEO, told IgniteIt on Tuesday.

Either way, reactions to the new legislative change are mixed.

Senator Mitch McConnell, who pushed for hemp legalization in 2018, helped set up the new limits, arguing the Farm Bill was never designed to create a market for low-dose beverages or psychoactive isomers. Senator Rand Paul and other lawmakers opposed the ban. However, their attempts failed as the must-pass spending bill was a priority in order to reopen the government, as reported by High Times.

On the other side of the spectrum are advocates in the regulated marijuana industry who say a ban is needed to correct a loophole in the 2018 Farm Bill and address concerns about the quality of hemp-derived cannabinoid products.

David Craig, CMO of licensed MSO Illicit Gardens, called the ban “a long-overdue correction to a loophole that’s been exploited for years.”

“The unregulated sale of synthetic and intoxicating hemp products has blurred the line between safe, tested cannabis and cheap lab-made imitations,” Craig told IgniteIt’s A.J. Herrington. “Closing that gap protects consumers, restores integrity to the market, and ensures that cannabis is produced and sold under real oversight.”

Paul Armentano, deputy director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), recently told IgniteIt that the group and other organizations have “urged the FDA to establish regulatory guidelines governing the production, testing, labeling, and marketing of hemp-derived intoxicating cannabinoid products.”

However, groups like the U.S. Hemp Roundtable are not on the same page. The organization emphasized that more than 95% of hemp extract products could be banned under the new measure, issuing the following statement:

“Businesses are deeply disappointed by the decisions of Congress and their openness to receiving false information so easily.”

Either way, advocates can now use a one-year window to push for regulatory solutions rather than outright prohibition, before federal restrictions take full effect.