The USDA can now review and approve hemp oversight plans submitted by states and establish a Federal plan for states that do not formulate their own plans. After so much talk, this move should get things moving in states that did not allow hemp production prior to the 2018 Farm Bill.

During the lead-up to the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, groups such as the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) and the National Young Farmers Coalition (NYFC) fought to secure mandatory funding for the Value-Added Producer Grant program, which they believed would bolster it for years to come. The push was successful, but now, the Senate is proposing cutting all of the discretionary funding the grant program receives through the agriculture appropriations bill. If that happens, it could result in $8 million less per year going to farmers.