OSHKOSH (NBC 26) — The Oshkosh Common Council unanimously passed an ordinance banning anyone under 21 from buying intoxicating hemp products.
Statewide, it is legal to sell these products to anyone 18 and up, and council member Joe Stephenson says some businesses in Oshkosh have done so. Stephenson says the new ordinance will help address that.
"It's just a way to keep our community healthy but still allow folks to to be able to consume these things within reason," Stephenson said.
The new ordinance explicitly excludes CBD products, which are non-intoxicating.
Ben Mueller, the owner of HempWorks Wisconsin, says his dispensary only sells intoxicating products to customers 21 and older.
"21 and up, is a pretty standard thing to purchase anything, you know, nicotine and alcohol," Mueller said.
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Mueller also weighed in on the broader debate around cannabis access.
"If you can go to a foreign country and kill for the United States, why can't you smoke some cannabis? But again, regulation over illegalization," Mueller said.
Stephenson says the city's new ordinance is similar to others in the area. However, both men noted that Oshkosh's ordinance could become irrelevant after it is superseded by federal regulations banning most cannabinoid products.
"The Federal government is going to do what they're going to do. If it happens, it happens. I mean, we'll respond accordingly. This ordinance is really here to ensure that things like intoxicating hemp derivatives have a little bit of restrictions around them," Stephenson said.
Federal THC regulation is expected to take effect on Nov. 12 for synthetic and lab-converted cannabinoids like delta-8 and HHC. Other products will begin regulation on Dec. 11.
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