DeWine calls on Ohio legislature to ban or limit Delta 8 sales

To demonstrate how easy it is for minors to buy Delta 8, Ohio Department of Public Safety Director Andy Wilson asked two 15-year-olds to buy some from a gas station convenience store in Clark County.

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“Their instructions were not to be tricky and not to try to act older than they were. There was no doubt in looking at them that they were clearly underage,” said Wilson. “In under 10 minutes and within three miles of their high school, the kids walked into a BP gas station and purchased THC gummies with no questions asked.”

DeWine at a press conference Wednesday displayed the items they purchased. They included a gummy branded with NBA Star James Harden and cereal bars with logos ripped off from Frosted Flakes and Cocoa Puffs.

“When you package a product like this and make a product like this, it does appeal, in fact, to kids. This is exactly what the makers of this product are doing,” DeWine said. “We know they’re harmful to kids, we know they’re readily available, and today, again, I’m asking the state legislature to take action. Local police cannot do anything, I cannot do anything without action by the state legislature.”

Delta 8 can be drawn from hemp, a low THC, cannabis cash crop that was legalized in the 2018 Federal Farm Bill. Since then, manufacturers have learned how to increase Delta 8 yields, resulting in an influx of the product on the market.

But Ohio has largely left hemp regulation untouched. In Ohio, there’s no age limit on who can buy Delta 8 or any other hemp-derived product; though some stores are sure to card.

DeWine said his lawyers advised him he can’t enact age limits or other meaningful oversight by executive order, so he needs the legislature to act.

He said he’d be “very happy to have (Delta 8) banned,” entirely, but added that it’s up to the legislature. Any move to regulate the product away from children — like the steps the state intends to take with recreational marijuana — would be satisfactory, he said.

“Local police cannot do anything, I cannot do anything, without action from the state legislature,” DeWine said.

DeWine also called for retail establishments selling Delta 8 to take it off their shelves, which he called “the responsible thing to do.”

Also in attendance Wednesday was Gary Wenk, an emeritus professor of behavioral neuroscience at the Ohio State University who has studied cannabinoids for over 20 years. The researcher said that the health effects of Delta 8 are more or less identical with what’s seen with recreational marijuana, with particular harm coming to younger users.

“The younger the brain the more harm is done. When the brain is developing, it is very vulnerable to the actions of THC and cannabinoids in general,” Wenk said.

He noted that the products have been shown to be particularly addictive for younger consumers and has been shown to cause children to have difficulty paying attention in class, bring emotional instability, cause learning challenges and cause minors to start “acting out” at home.

Any change to Ohio’s hemp laws will likely be tied up in the state’s continued attempts to alter Issue 2, a citizen-initiated law that popularly legalized recreational marijuana. A reform approved by the Senate and backed by DeWine awaits House action, but House leadership has clearly signaled that it intends to take its time to perfect any regulation.