SEARCH SITE
VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL
- Code of Virginia
- Virginia Administrative Code
- Constitution of Virginia
- Charters
- Authorities
- Compacts
- Uncodified Acts
- RIS Users (account required)
SEARCHABLE DATABASES
- Bills & Resolutions
session legislation - Bill Summaries
session summaries - Reports to the General Assembly
House and Senate documents - Legislative Liaisons
State agency contacts
ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
- Bills & Resolutions: Since 1994
- Summaries: Since 1994
Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
1997 SESSION
972178480WHEREAS, although industrial hemp is derived from the Cannabis sativa plant, it is distinctive from its better known relative, in that it contains less than one percent of the chemical responsible for its psychoactive properties; and
WHEREAS, industrial hemp is very similar to jute and flax; and
WHEREAS, its three principal raw materials--fiber, hurds, and seeds--are used to produce textiles, ropes, cellulose plastics, resin, particle board, paper products, and oil; and
WHEREAS, faltering state agricultural economies have created pressure to investigate alternatives; and
WHEREAS, the 1996 Farm Bill will reduce government subsidies over the next seven years, pushing farmers to examine alternative cash crops: and
WHEREAS, increased foreign competition in established markets, such as tobacco, as well as innovative work with industrial hemp by Canada and the European community, has prompted increased interest; and
WHEREAS, scarce fiber supplies for the textile paper industries have caused rising prices, creating heightened interest in a plentiful domestic source for alternative fibers;
WHEREAS, the histories of the United States and Virginia are replete with examples of the utility of and dependence on industrial hemp; and
WHEREAS, in Colonial Virginia the cultivation of hemp was mandatory; and
WHEREAS, the first drafts of the Declaration of Independence were written on hemp; and
WHEREAS, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson owned hemp plantations and promoted its benefits; and
WHEREAS, many farmers paid their taxes in bails of hemp; and
WHEREAS, during World War II the "Hemp for Victory" program sought to encourage farmers to resume growing the plant for the war effort, which resulted in 36,000 acres being planted in seed hemp in 1942; and
WHEREAS, recently the industry has experienced a revitalization, with worldwide hemp sales of $5 million in 1993 and increasing to $75 million in 1995; and
WHEREAS, the growing of industrial hemp in the United States is allowed only by federal permit, and currently three states have permits pending to grow industrial hemp in their states; and
WHEREAS, according to the October 1996 issue of Governing, the American Farm Bureau Federation, representing 4.6 million farmers, passed a unanimous resolution urging research into "the viability and economic potential" of hemp; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That a joint subcommittee be established to study the economic benefits of, and barriers to, the .production of industrial hemp in Virginia. The joint subcommittee shall be composed of six members, as follows: four members of the House of Delegates, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House, and two members of the Senate, to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections.
The direct costs of this study shall not exceed $3,600.
The Division of Legislative Services shall provide staff support for the study. Technical assistance shall be provided by staff of the Agricultural Experiment Stations. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide assistance to the joint subcommittee, upon request.
The joint subcommittee shall complete its work in time to submit its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the 1998 Session of the General Assembly as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents.
Implementation of this resolution is subject to subsequent approval and certification by the Joint Rules Committee. The Committee may withhold expenditures or delay the period for the conduct of the study.