The hemp ban veto stands as City Council fails to override Mayor Johnson's decision, preserving access to intoxicating products amid ongoing regulatory debate.
Chicago Mayor's Veto of Hemp Ban Stands; Override Effort Defeated
Mayor Brandon Johnson's veto of a ban on intoxicating hemp products will stand after an override attempt went down to defeat 26-20 last week. Proponents of the ban needed a 32-vote supermajority to override the veto.
Last month, the City Council passed an ordinance that would impose civil penalties of thousands of dollars on any business selling intoxicating hemp products, such as flowers, edibles, and vapes. But the measure from Alderman Marty Quinn (D) also contained a carve-out that would allow businesses holding liquor licenses to sell hemp-derived THC beverages after the city's hotel and restaurant industry called for it.
Johnson vetoed the measure two weeks ago, saying that with a federal ban looming, municipal action was "premature." He was also responding to small business interests, who said the ban would quickly drive them out of business.
"I am vetoing the proposed ordinance as written, as it felt premature and would effectively be a prohibition-style ban on hemp businesses, which we know oftentimes creates a black market and subjects very vulnerable people to further harm," Johnson said. "Let us be mindful that the majority of our city’s hemp retailers are independent, small businesses, and many are Black- and Brown-owned."
Council members supporting the ban argued that it was needed to protect kids from psychoactive products that were often packaged to resemble candy and snacks and that the current state of regulation of such products was a "Wild West" that needed some limits.
"That veto is fine, but the burden is on you now," Alderman Scott Waguespack (D) said to Johnson during debate before the override vote. "The burden is on you."
But members who supported vetoing the ordinance said it was overbroad and that the city was not prepared to properly test and regulate intoxicating hemp products for synthetic ingredients or contaminants.
Those in favor of the veto said the previously passed regulations were overly broad and that the city could not properly regulate or test the products for synthetic or unregulated ingredients.
"We could be working with the industry to make sure that we actually protect people. But that is not what this piece of legislation accomplishes, and I am very glad that the mayor is vetoing," said Alderwoman Rossana Rodriguez Sanchez (D).