A federal judge in Roanoke on Friday declined seven Virginia business owners’ request to eliminate a new regulation that removes an exception to the state’s limit of 2 milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) per product package. The new standard took effect Aug. 15. 

The entrepreneurs had asked the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to block the rule stemming from the state budget lawmakers passed and Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed in late June.

They said the removal of the 25-to-1 ratio, which allowed hemp products to exceed the 2 mg THC limit if they contained 25 times as much cannabidiol (CBD), would devastate their businesses, cause severe financial strains and undermine Virginia’s small business owners.

Hemp businesses ask federal judge to block Virginia’s new THC cap

The court found that the plaintiffs did not prove that the new standard would significantly harm their businesses, and determined that the new rule was created in the public’s best interest. 

“Because Plaintiffs have not demonstrated either a likelihood of success on the merits or irreparable injury if HB 30 becomes effective, and because the balance of equities and the public interest weigh in favor of Defendants, the Motions for Preliminary Injunction … and Temporary Restraining Order … are DENIED,” Judge Robert S. Ballou wrote on Aug. 14. 

The plaintiffs and other hemp industry representatives reacted quickly, expressing disappointment in the judgment, requesting lawmakers discuss the matter in a special legislative session and asking authorities to pause the new law. 

“We are incredibly disappointed with today’s news. The judge himself acknowledged that this was rushed legislation, leading to complications and unintended consequences,” Barbara Biddle, president of the Cannabis Small Business Association and owner of District Hemp Botanicals, said in a statement. “We are calling on legislators to convene a special session to address the gap in access for consumers, protect businesses from bankruptcy, and reinstate the previous definition of hemp.”

Biddle added: “We’re also asking the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority, Office of the Attorney General, and local law enforcement to consider halting enforcement of the redefinition until legislators are able to resolve this issue.”

Travis Lane, owner of Northern Virginia Hemp & Agriculture LLC, placed blame for the new standard squarely on Spanberger and her administration.

“If Virginia small businesses are pushed toward bankruptcy while a new state-regulated cannabis market is being built for 2027, voters deserve to remember who made that choice, and our elected leaders still have an opportunity to change it,” Lane said in a statement.

Spanberger has not commented on the ruling but earlier this month, her spokesperson said gaps between the state’s marijuana and hemp laws created dangerous conditions.

“For years, untested and highly-intoxicating products have flooded Virginia with little oversight, inadequate protections for kids and teenagers, and few tools for law enforcement to address the illicit market — all because of a loophole in state law that bad faith actors have exploited and pushed the limit of its intended use,” the spokesperson said.

He added that the state’s adult-use cannabis market, slated to open next year, will streamline the industries, shore up safety and create new opportunities for small businesses owners.

Learn more about the new regulation and other hemp and marijuana changes in the state at the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority’s website.