Fighting for CBD: The Legal Battle in California In this episode of the Miracle Plant Podcast, Justin Benton, delves into the ongoing legal battles surrounding the use of full-spectrum CBD products in California. The episode begins with a discussion on the recent emergency law passed by Governor Gavin Newsom on September 6th, which bans full-spectrum CBD products containing any trace amounts of THC. This law contradicts both state law AB 45 and the federal 2018 Farm Bill, which define hemp as containing less than 0.3% THC.
In this episode of the Miracle Plant Podcast, Justin Benton, delves into the ongoing legal battles surrounding the use of full-spectrum CBD products in California. The episode begins with a discussion on the recent emergency law passed by Governor Gavin Newsom on September 6th, which bans full-spectrum CBD products containing any trace amounts of THC. This law contradicts both state law AB 45 and the federal 2018 Farm Bill, which define hemp as containing less than 0.3% THC.
Legal Contradictions and Actions Taken:
Justin explain how AB 45, a law he helped pass, clearly defines hemp and allows for trace amounts of THC, similar to kombucha's trace alcohol content.
The emergency law is described as overreaching and ill-advised, leading to the filing of a temporary restraining order, which was unfortunately not approved.
The next steps involve taking the case to federal court, arguing that the emergency law violates both state and federal regulations.
Synthetic THC and Industry Impact:
The episode highlights the issue of synthetic THC, particularly Delta-8 THC, which is not naturally occurring in the cannabis plant and has been banned in several states, including California.
He discusses how some companies' misuse of synthetic THC has given cannabis lobbyists an opportunity to push for restrictive measures, potentially influenced by political contributions.
Personal and Business Implications:
He shares personal anecdotes about living in California and the impact of the new law on our business, 101 Hemp.
Despite the legal challenges, our store in Ventura remains open, and their have contingency plans to continue serving our customers, including shipping from other states like Arizona.
Historical Context and Advocacy:
The episode provides a historical overview of hemp's legal status in the U.S., from its use during World War II to its re-legalization in 2014 and 2018.
He emphasizes the importance of keeping cannabis raw and natural, citing scientific research on the benefits of whole-plant consumption.
Call to Action and Community Support:
He encourages listeners to support our cause by rating and reviewing the podcast, sharing their stories, and considering subscription options to ensure continued access to our products.
Email: jbenton@101cbd.org
Store Phone: 805-642-5623
Website: 101cbd.org
Subscription: unlimitedcbda.com
Ask anything about the episode:
Time Stamps:
00:00:00 - Introduction and Legal Issues
00:00:43 - Welcome to the Miracle Plant Podcast
00:00:58 - Update on California Legal Fight
00:01:31 - Governor Newsom's Emergency Law
00:02:05 - Temporary Restraining Order and Legal Actions
00:03:32 - Synthetic THC and Delta-8 Controversy
00:04:50 - Impact of Emergency Law on CBD Industry
00:05:14 - Store Operations and California Weather
00:06:17 - Influence of California and New York on National Policies
00:07:01 - Dispensary Sales and State Revenue
00:08:05 - Federal Court Actions and Legal Support
00:09:01 - Historical Context of Hemp Legislation
00:10:41 - Misuse of Emergency Law
00:11:13 - Enforcement Issues and Legal Violations
00:11:45 - Contingency Plans for Business Operations
00:13:10 - Importance of Miracle Plant for Health
00:14:26 - Benefits of Raw Cannabis
00:16:03 - Explanation of Raw Cannabis and CBDa
00:16:46 - Listener Engagement and Support
00:18:17 - Subscription Options for Products
00:19:00 - Historical Use of Cannabis in Medicine
00:20:23 - Testimonials and Impact Stories
00:21:40 - Mission to Educate and Heal
00:22:07 - Closing Remarks and Call to Action
Justin Benton:
This was clearly not an emergency. You know, part of it was that the state of California wasn't enforcing AB 45. And whose fault is that? If there were still products on the shelves that they were concerned about, then they should have been enforcing it. They shouldn't be passing a bill that's in violation of state and federal law. But that's what they did. And fortunately, you know, we've got enough smart people and good people on our side who are going to fight the good fight.
Announcer: Welcome to the Miracle Plant Podcast, the show that inspires, promotes, and gives you a daily dose of inspiration from the people who have used cannabis to change their lives in extraordinary ways. Here's your host, Justin Benton.
Justin Benton: Welcome back to the Miracle Plant Podcast, where we discuss this miracle plant with so many names and how it's helping people in so many extraordinary ways. Well, hey, it's me. I feel like I missed you there. We've definitely had our hands full out here in California, and I want to make sure to give you an update on what is going on with the legal fight for health and wellness in the state of California. Since September 6th, Governor Newsom passed the emergency law banning full spectrum CBD, any products that have any trace amount of THC, even though that is in contradiction with the state law, AB45, that I helped pass with Patrick Goggin, who we had on our latest episode, and the California Hemp Council, that clearly states that hemp is defined as 0.3% or less THC, kind of like kombucha. You know, kombucha has a little bit of alcohol in it, but it's just trace amounts, and that's why you can buy it or anyone can buy it at the grocery store. Well, unfortunately, this overreaching, ill-advised emergency law is in violation of state law, according to AB 45. And, of course, in violation of federal law, which is a 2018 Farm Bill that legally defined hemp as anything with less than 0.3% THC. So, what we did since last episode is we, and in the industry, filed a temporary restraining order to put an injunction or stop to this emergency regulation that did not go through traditional legislative procedures. And unfortunately, the judge did not approve our temporary restraining order. So we had to go to the higher courts, which is what you do. So we are filing a injunction, basically suing the state of California under federal court system. to because of the simple arguments that I made in the beginning, which is that the AB45 clearly covers that synthetic THC, which is what this whole thing kind of revolves around, is that they were making, taking hemp and then using some chemical compounds and making synthetic products like what's called THC Delta 8. which isn't even naturally occurring in the cannabis plant. So they used a science experiment to turn a non-intoxicating plant into a intoxicating molecule structure called THC Delta-8 and they were selling it all over the place. 38 states brought up this synthetic THC Delta-8 and 11 states ruled against them, including California. We've already ruled against this. We've already said synthetic cannabinoids, which is like Delta 8 is what it's called, are not legal to sell. However, it didn't stop some companies. Of course, here at 101 Hemp and the Miracle Plant, we never sold Delta 8, never would. It's not naturally occurring in the plant and those of us in the industry it no like no co the big hemp festival out there in Colorado all of us in the industry knew it was garbage and knew it wasn't healthy and knew it wasn't natural and so unfortunately a couple bad apples kind of ruined the bunch here and It gave the cannabis lobbyists the opportunity to make an argument along with probably a sizable check and for Gavin Newsom's reelection, just a hunch, that they would take this extreme measure to pass an emergency law, you know, banning something that has already been legally defined in the state of California and legally defined in our country to go against that. So in the end, I believe we will win.
Announcer: I believe that we will win.
Justin Benton: But right now, it is in limbo. You know, we still have our store open here in Ventura, California. Come by and visit if you're in the area. And if you're not in the area, why aren't you in the area? It's a little warm today. I believe it's almost 80 degrees. I'm looking at the ocean right now and a little ocean breeze coming off the sand. And it sure is a great time to visit. I originally grew up in the Midwest and actually my mom, who lives out there in Nebraska, who's been a co-host on the Miracle Plant, and hopefully she'll be back soon. We're trying to schedule a time maybe when she's out here. She's coming out here for my birthday that's coming up here in November. And, you know, maybe a little Thanksgiving and maybe a little Nebraska Cornhusker football against USC. Anyways, the reason I say that is it's always so beautiful out here and it gets cold back east, which is probably the main reason why I live here is the weather and the ocean. It's just I love the state of California. It's just really unfortunate that California and New York, we kind of lead the way as far as what the rest of the country follows in suit. And that's why so many big movements like what's going on right now with these multi-state operators, cannabis dispensary companies are coming after California because if they can get California to fall in line and only sell CBD products through dispensaries, then perhaps the rest of the states will follow suit. Kind of like how Colorado was the first state to legalize cannabis, and we can sell our hemp products in Colorado, the ones that we make in California. There's just a little bit different labeling that you have to put on there. However, in California, because of the fight against the cannabis lobbyists. We did not, we cannot sell hemp derived products in the state of California dispensary. And again, why is that? It's really simple. Why do you think it is? Give me a second there to think about it. Follow the money. You know, obviously it's twofold. One, the dispensaries make more money. if people come and buy CBD from the dispensaries. And the state of California makes more money because they tax cannabis at such a high rate, you know, 40, 50%. So there you have it. That's the latest and greatest what's going on with our golden state out here in California. So we're going back to court at the federal level. And I do want to thank my good friend and you know, attorney extraordinaire Patrick Goggin. Check him out if you have any hemp questions or anything in that realm. He's a great friend, a great attorney, and he's helped lead the charge for cannabis and hemp over the last over 30 years. So he was instrumental in getting AB 45 passed, which is the state law to make hemp clearly defined which Gavin Newsom's, uh, emergency law on September 6th is in violation of, you know, we went through the legislation process. That's where we are as a democratic country. You know, it's a democracy, you know, and we, they, you know, just, you know, thumbed their nose at the bill that took us many months and years to pass. Uh, not to mention the federal farm bill passed in 2018 signed into law in December of 2018. Thumbs your nose at that as well. And that took years. Hemp was essentially kind of illegal since 1937. They did make hemp legal for the World War II efforts because they could use hemp for so many things like parachute strappings, the ropes for the ships. And so they actually encouraged farmers. There was a hemp for victory, victory for hemp. campaign where they encouraged farmers in those early 1940s to grow hemp so they could help support the troops. And then after the war was over, they made it basically illegal again. And, you know, it wasn't officially legal in our country until 2014, a pilot program started, which basically a pilot program is saying, hey, let's see if there's a market for this. Let's see if we could do this. Let's see if farmers want to do it. Let's see if consumers want to buy it. And it was a resounding yes, thanks to so many people like Woody Harrelson and Joe Hickey and Patrick Goggin and Bob Hovind and so many people that really helped, you know, and a lot of past guests. If you go and look at some, you know, Chloe Villalano, we've had a lot of these, you know, hamsters help, you know, Morris Spiegel. uh, on and on. And, um, it's, uh, it was a lot of hard work to get us here, uh, decades. And unfortunately this ill-advised emergency law, and we see there's real emergencies out there, right? I mean, there's hurricanes in the East coast where, you know, and there's people that are suffering and, you know, lost their homes and don't know what to do. Um, when you do pass emergency law, that's what emergency law is for to, When you're going to bypass our regular American due diligence process, it's for an emergency. This was clearly not an emergency. And, you know, part of it was that the state of California wasn't enforcing AB 45. And whose fault is that? If there were still products on the shelves that they were concerned about, then they should have been enforcing it. They shouldn't be passing a bill that's in violation of state and federal law. But that's what they did. So we're doing, and fortunately, we've got enough smart people and good people on our side who are gonna fight the good fight. Hemp Supporter and Hemp Roundtable are leading the charge right now. Jonathan Miller, no attorney. So I'm confident we'll get this thing figured out. But if we don't, the good news is that the governor can only do these, I don't want to say bad words like draconian, but he can only pull this kind of stuff. Uh, in his state, which is California. And so fortunately we do have operations in other states like Arizona, and we can continue to, uh, serve California and the rest of the country, um, in other states. So we could mail, uh, as they, I think I said on the last one, you know, if you've seen that Seinfeld episode where Jerry, uh, you know, Newman, who's a neighbor. who lives down the way in the apartment building, that were trying to stop junk mail from coming up. And Jerry was like, what is going on with the junk mail? And Newman's like, Jerry, nobody can stop the mail. And so we'll continue to service California however we can. If it means we have to ship from Arizona, then we will. Currently, we still keep our doors open. I don't know how much longer that's going to happen. I don't know what there's going to be in kind of an enforcement. It literally could happen today that we are forced by the city or the state to close our doors. Obviously, we'll fight that as well. But we do have contingency plans to make sure that we can serve you, because at the end of the day, there's so many families like, you know, Latara and Kristen and Connie Wellick that have been on that this product, this plant, you know, restored their health, whether it's their own health or their loved one's health. You know, obviously autism is how we got, we found this miracle plant to help clear the fog for my son and his severe autism diagnosis. And, you know, my covenant with God was to pay it forward and teach people and reach a billion people by 2025 about the power of this miracle plant, especially in the raw form. So, you know, at the end of the day, you know, I just wanted to give you an update And, uh, you know, appreciate you listening. If this is something that resonates with you, you know, please, you know, rate and review wherever you're finding this. And it means a lot. It helps the algorithms, even if it's like five seconds or just a thumbs up or a heart or anything. If it like, literally, if you take five seconds and just say something or, or comment, um, it can help the algorithm on the platform. Notice that, Hey, this seems to be, people seem to like this and they can put it in front of other people. So we can be educated about this miracle plant. And again, there's a lot of confusion about CBD and THC. And the difference here with the miracle plant that we preach about is keeping this miracle plant raw, cannabis, hemp, whatever you want to call it. Um, when you keep it low, low in THC, less than 0.3% THC, which is not intoxicating you, um, you have a product or, an experience that's up to 1,000 times more beneficial, more powerful than isolated powder CBD, which is called CBD isolate. And that's been scientifically proven. You know, Dr. Raphael Mechoulam, the godfather of cannabinoid medicine, was one of the head researchers to prove that, along with Dr. Nathan Russo, with the entourage effect, which basically means when you take all of the cannabinoids, all of the flavonoids, all of the fatty acids, everything that this plant contains, and you consume it in its whole plant form, you get this powerful, like, symphony of, you know, homeostasis, homeostasis balancing effect on your body. And what homeostasis means is balance. So, which means your body knows what true north is, and knows that you're healthy, and it helps this supplement. Every mammal has what's called an endocannabinoid system. And the endocannabinoid system helps balance the other nine major systems in your body. So whatever it is that you're going through, if you, when you introduce raw cannabis into your diet, it can help supplement your endocannabinoid system, which will help balance out all of the other systems in your body. And that's the key here is consuming raw cannabis. So if you can grow it in your backyard, great. If you don't have a green thumb or the time, or you live in a climate that doesn't allow so or you live in an apartment where you don't have any any dirt then you know you want to buy a product that represents raw cannabis which is what 101 hemp org that's what we sell it's called CBD a which is the CBD that the plant makes the a is the acidic form so it's called CBD a and then all the other cannabinoids are there CBGA CBC a and on and on and on there's over a hundred cannabinoids in the plant so Anyways, I hope this was helpful. If it was, feel free to shoot me an email and drop me a line. Let me know that you're listening, that you're loving it. If you have any questions or want to help support us in this fight to have to keep the plant accessible to 40 million Californians, my email is J as in Justin, Benton, B-E-N-T-O-N. at 101cbd.org and I'd love to hear from you love to answer any questions and love your support whether it's encouragement or contributions or what have you again our best method for continuing to serve you in this trying time is to be on either our monthly subscription so if you go to 101cbd.org You can buy any product and there's an option for monthly, which is 30% off and we'll ship you a product every month and you can cancel anytime. Or there's an annual option if you go to unlimitedcbda.com. Excuse me, unlimitedcbda.com. That's where that one is. So unlimitedcbda.com, and it'll take you to the link where you can sign up for our annual subscription, which gives you unlimited access to our products for 12 months. So check that out if that's something that sounds of interest to you. Again, if you have any questions, you can give us a call at the store. It's 805-642-5623. Again, that's 805-642-5623. I'm in the store most days, so maybe you'll catch me when I'm there. Like I said, happy to answer any questions. Appreciate everyone's support. And we're here to fight the good fight. This miracle plant helped my son heal, and I'm here to fight whatever I can do. product dates back thousands of years, 8,000 years to be exact in oriental medical journals. This healing plant was used as medicine even in biblical times. It was a part of the recipe that was divinely presented to Moses when they made up the holy anointing oil 2,800 years ago. And it was in fact in It's called cannabossum, is what it was called biblically. And even in the times of Jesus, 2000 years ago, they used that same holy anointing oil when healing the sick. And it had this miracle plant cannabis, or cannabossum, is how it's referred to in Hebrew, in this oil. So it has been a part of our healing journey as humans for thousands upon thousands of years. And I will continue to fight the good fight until I take my last breath here when my time is up. And I just appreciate everybody's support. And I know a lot of people reached out and they signed up for subscriptions. And number two, they told us their story and how important our products are, how important raw cannabis is to them. And it's been really heartwarming to know that we've made an impact. And again, we can all use that little bit of encouragement in life through the ups and the downs. And I just, like I said, I heartfelt, genuine, appreciate, thank you, everybody, for your support over the years. I'm glad our products have given you the results, because I've heard so many more stories in recent weeks about how these plants of our products and this miracle plant has helped with obviously pain, arthritis, Sleep issues, insomnia, anxiety, and stress, which seem to be at an all-time level these days, especially in our country here in the U.S. You know, not to mention the autoimmune diseases, the cancer. We met a lady at an auction where we donated our products, and she actually won, and she came up to us afterward and was so happy to meet us, my wife, and Molly, and myself, because she had used our products. She was actually referred to us by Connie. Connie Wellick, who has been on a couple past episodes. And she just said that she was so grateful and happy that she could win the basket that we donated of our products because it helped her through breast cancer. And she no longer has breast cancer. So it's just, it's a miracle plant. And I can tell you thousands of stories. And at the end of the day, I just want people to have access to it. And that's what we're doing. That's what the miracle plant's about. is to educate people about this miracle plant, especially in the raw form. So there you go. Well, without any further ado, uh, let's end this podcast. Like we do every miracle plant podcast and say, heal the world. Cause that is the mission to reach 1 billion people by 2025 about the power of this miracle plant, especially in the raw form. So on the count of three, let's say heal the world and get out there and do it. Shall we? Here we go. Join in one, two, three. Alright, well, thanks for swinging by the miracle plant podcast today. Hope you learned something Hope you got a little inspired and hope you pass it on to the next person who's looking for help looking for hope About this miracle plant. So be a blessing everybody and happy healing