HR 6500 Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2027 — Sec. 2019 Hemp Delay
President Trump signed H.R. 6500 into law on September 2, 2026 (Public Law 119-103), after the House passed it 370–48 on Sept 1 and the Senate 90–6 on Aug 8. Section 2019 pushes the Section 781 cliff — the 0.4mg total-THC-per-container cap and the narrowed “total THC” hemp definition — from Nov 12 to December 11, 2026, but only for cannabinoids capable of being naturally produced by a Cannabis sativa L. plant (THCA flower, hemp-derived delta-9, etc.). Carve-out: synthetic / non-naturally-occurring cannabinoids (converted delta-8, delta-10, HHC, THC-O and similar) still lose hemp status on Nov 12 — the delay does not reach them. The reprieve is tied to the CR’s funding window, so the total-THC standard takes effect Dec 11, 2026 absent further action, and the same fight recurs at that deadline. State frameworks with their own statutory effective dates (e.g., Missouri HB 2641, Illinois SB 3222) are unaffected by the federal move.
Primary sponsor: Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO) R
Cosponsors: 1 1 R
Became Public Law No: 119-103.
Continuing resolution (H.R. 6500), the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2027, passed by the U.S. Senate 90–6 in the early hours of August 8, 2026. It funds the federal government through December 11, 2026.
Section 2019 of the bill’s extensions division delays the two central Section 781 provisions — the 0.4mg total-THC-per-container cap and the narrowed statutory definition of hemp — from November 12 to December 11, 2026, cross-referencing the Section 781 clauses rather than restating them. A carve-out preserves the November 12 recriminalization of synthetic cannabinoids not capable of being naturally produced by a Cannabis sativa L. plant.
The hemp language was secured by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) with Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN); Sen. Klobuchar led the 61–32 motion to table Sen. Ted Budd’s amendment (#6747) to strip it out. Passage is not assured: the House-passed version of the CR did not include the delay, a coalition of 35 state attorneys general is urging Congress to reject it, and the House does not return from recess until August 31. Until the House also passes the CR and the President signs it, November 12, 2026 remains the operative federal deadline.
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