Montana

Montana went from permissive hemp state to one of the most restrictive intoxicating hemp markets in the country in a single 2025 legislative session. Two bills signed by Gov. Greg Gianforte on May 8, 2025 combine to close the hemp Delta-9 beverage channel almost entirely. HB 49 (effective April 7, 2025) caps consumable hemp products at 0.5 mg total THC per serving and 2 mg per package — among the strictest state-level hemp mg caps in the country. The 2mg per-package limit is tighter than the incoming federal ceiling under Section 781 (0.4mg per container is stricter, but per-package structure differs), and dramatically tighter than what national brands sell (2.5mg to 10mg per can). Industry trackers estimated that approximately 80-90% of existing hemp THC beverages and gummies immediately became non-compliant on the HB 49 effective date, forcing manufacturers to reformulate or exit the Montana market. HB 49 also addresses synthetic cannabinoids, closing a companion loophole. But the harder bar is SB 375, signed May 8, 2025 (effective May 5, 2025), codified under Title 50 and administered by DPHHS. SB 375 prohibits the sale of any hemp product containing detectable total delta-9 THC to Montana consumers unless the product is specifically authorized by the FDA as a food or drug. Since no mainstream hemp beverage is FDA-authorized as a food or drug, SB 375 functions as a near-total closure of the hemp Delta-9 retail channel — even for products that would technically pass HB 49’s mg limits. The two bills work in tandem: HB 49 sets mg caps for the narrow category of low-dose hemp products that might still be legal, while SB 375 requires FDA authorization on top of that. In practice, this means non-detectable-THC CBD and CBG products can sell in Montana retail, and effectively nothing else. Montana pairs this hemp closure with a robust adult-use marijuana program run by the Cannabis Control Division (CCD, within the Department of Revenue). Initiative 190 (2020) legalized adult-use marijuana for adults 21 and older, and HB 636 (2025, effective July 1, 2026) sets marijuana-infused edible limits at 5 mg per serving and 100 mg per package — 10× and 50× respectively over the hemp product caps. Adult-use and medical dispensaries operate in opt-in ‘green counties’ including Missoula, Yellowstone, Gallatin, Flathead, Lewis and Clark, and Cascade. Medical cannabis patients 18+ can purchase at the 4% medical tax rate. Delta-8, delta-10, HHC, THCA, and other intoxicating hemp derivatives are treated as marijuana when intended to produce psychoactive effects — they can only be sold through the licensed cannabis system. Out-of-state hemp brands cannot ship hemp Delta-9 gummies or beverages to Montana addresses under SB 375; enforcement primarily targets retailers and shippers rather than consumers, but the DTC channel is functionally closed. For the federal cliff on November 12, 2026, Montana is a state where Section 781 largely does not change the operative regulatory picture — Montana is already closed. Section 781 will federally reinforce Montana’s existing enforcement posture, and Montana’s regulated dispensary system will remain the only real THC channel. Montana’s approach (comprehensive dispensary channeling + FDA-authorization gate on hemp) may serve as a model for other states considering similar frameworks post-cliff.