[HISTORY: Adopted by the Legislature of the Menominee Indian
Tribe 5-7-2015 by Ord. No. 15-06; amended in its entirety 6-20-2019 by Ord. No. 19-06. Subsequent amendments
noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be titled "Industrial Hemp."
The Legislature finds that hemp has been continuously cultivated
for millennia, is accepted and available in the global marketplace,
and has numerous beneficial, practical, and economic uses, including,
but not limited to, high-strength fiber; textiles; clothing; biofuel;
paper products; protein-rich food containing fatty acids and amino
acids; biodegradable plastics; resins; nontoxic medicinal and cosmetic
products; construction materials; rope; and value-added crafts. The
hemp plant is morphologically distinctive and readily identifiable
as an agricultural crop grown for the cultivation and harvesting of
its fiber and seed. It is the intent of the Legislature to legalize
the agricultural production of industrial hemp and provide a regulatory
framework that will ensure the security and safety of hemp crops while
at the same time facilitate the ability of the Tribe to successfully
compete in the global hemp marketplace.
Notwithstanding Menominee Tribal Code Chapter 306 or any other tribal law, industrial hemp is an agricultural product that may be legally grown, produced, possessed, processed, and commercially traded in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. Interstate and international commercial transactions may be conducted by tribally licensed industrial hemp growers with respect to industrial hemp and industrial hemp products produced on the Menominee Reservation by licensees. A grower engaged in processing, selling, or otherwise distributing industrial hemp cultivated by a grower licensed under this chapter, or selling industrial hemp products produced therefrom, is not subject to any civil or criminal actions under Menominee law for engaging in such activities.
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly requires otherwise:
A variation of genera Cannabis that has been developed through
cultivation by selective breeding.
Menominee Tribal Department of Agriculture and Food Systems.
Any person or entity growing industrial hemp and being duly
licensed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
Includes all products made from industrial hemp, including,
but not limited to, cloth, cordage, fiber, food, fuel, paint, paper,
building materials, plastics, seed, livestock feed, seed meal, seed
oil intended for consumption, seed certified for cultivation, extracted
chemicals from leaves, stems, roots, flowers and seed for therapeutic,
nutritional, pharmaceutical, and nutraceutical products, or any other
hemp product derived from industrial hemp, provided the product is
derived from seeds originating from industrial hemp cultivars approved
by the Department in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
All parts and varieties of the genera Cannabis, cultivated
or possessed by a grower, whether growing or not, that contain a tetrahydrocannabinol
concentration of 0.3% or less by weight.
Percent of total THC, which is the combined percent of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol
and tetrahydrocannabinolic acid in any part of the genera Cannabis,
regardless of moisture content.
The component delta-9-tetrahydrocannibinol contained in the
genera Cannabis, or in the resinous extractives of the genera Cannabis,
or the synthetic substances, derivatives, and their isomers with similar
chemical structure and pharmacological activity.
A.
The Department shall administer and enforce the provisions of this
chapter.
B.
The Department is authorized to investigate compliance with this chapter, and have access, subject to the provisions of Subsection C of this section, to all land, buildings, or places where industrial hemp is grown, kept, stored, or handled, and to all records relating to hemp production. The Department may make copies of the records.
C.
The Department may access properties and records specified in Subsection B of this section during regular business hours upon the consent of the grower or when the Department has probable cause to believe that any grower licensed under this chapter is otherwise in violation of this chapter or rules adopted under it.
A.
Any entity wishing to engage in the cultivation of industrial hemp
must be licensed as an industrial hemp grower by the Department. A
Department-issued license authorizes industrial hemp production only
at the site or sites specified by the licensee in the licensee's
license application.
B.
In order to obtain a license, a prospective licensee must provide
evidence that the majority ownership of the prospective licensee is
held by the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, or an instrumentality
of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin approved by the Menominee
Tribal Legislature, and file an application with the Department. A
Department-issued license is valid for three years and may be renewed,
but may not be transferred.
C.
To qualify for a license, an applicant shall demonstrate to the satisfaction
of the Department, in a manner prescribed by the Department, that
the applicant intends to and is capable of growing industrial hemp
and has adopted methods to ensure its safe production which, at a
minimum, include:
(1)
Securing the supply of all industrial hemp seed obtained for planting
in compliance with this chapter;
(2)
Ensuring the integrity of the industrial hemp crop while it is in
the field, which includes filing with the Department the location
and acreage of all parcels sown and other field reference information
as may be required by the Department;
(3)
Agreeing to the provisions of § 307-5 of this chapter regarding inspections and records requests by the Department; and
(4)
Maintaining and providing to the Department records that reflect
compliance with the provisions of this chapter and with all other
tribal law regulating the planting and cultivation of industrial hemp.
D.
Every grower shall maintain all production records for at least three
years after each production season at its principal place of business
located on the Menominee Reservation.
E.
Every grower shall place signs at the natural access points of industrial
hemp fields that communicate, at a minimum, that the crop is industrial
hemp and that the THC content is insignificant. The minimum length
of the signs is 24 inches and the minimum height is 18 inches.
F.
The Department may deny, suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew the
license of any grower that:
(1)
Makes a false statement or misrepresentation on an application for
a license or renewal of a license;
(2)
Fails to comply with or violates any provision of this chapter or
any rule adopted under it; or
(3)
Fails to take any action required by the Department under the provisions
of this chapter within the time period stated in a written notice
to take such action.
G.
Revocation or suspension of a license may be in addition to any criminal
penalties or fines imposed on a grower under other tribal law.
H.
All the provisions of this section regarding obtaining and qualifying
for a license apply equally to license renewal or transfer.
A.
The Department shall charge a fee for each license granted to a grower
under this chapter. The fee amount charged for the first growing season
after the effective date of this chapter is $100 per acre of land
under cultivation.
B.
After the first growing season, the Department shall adopt by rule
a fee to fund and administer the program, to be used beginning with
the growing seasons following the first growing season. All fee revenue
shall be utilized to defray the costs of the Department in administering
this chapter.
Only industrial hemp seed propagated from Cannabis wherein the
progeny are likely to possess no amount of THC greater than 0.3% by
weight are approved for use under the license. Special exemption may
be acquired by the licensee, upon written application and approval,
for purposes of research or breeding in order to develop more favorable
industrial hemp cultivars.
A.
Industrial hemp growers are required to annually submit plant samples
chosen by the Department to an independent, Department-certified testing
laboratory for the testing of THC levels in accordance with the requirements
of this chapter. The annual test results must be retained by the grower
for a period of three years. The samples must be from each noncontiguous,
individually identifiable field, regardless of size, that is owned
or controlled by the grower. The costs of the testing must be borne
by the grower, and the test results must be provided to the Department
by the laboratory. The Department has discretionary authority to require
random testing at any time.
B.
The Department may exempt a grower from the annual testing requirement
established under this section if the annual test results of the hemp
varieties grown by that producer prove to contain 0.3% THC or less
for three consecutive years.
C.
The Department shall adopt by rule the criteria for the certification
of a testing laboratory and the testing standards and processes to
be used by a laboratory under this section.
D.
In addition to plant testing, all products intended to be put into
the stream of commerce and which will be produced for human or animal
consumption or absorption shall be tested for quality and shall be
labeled. Such labeling shall include the percentage of THC, CBD, CBG
and CBN within the end product.
The Department is authorized to waive any provision of this
chapter as it would apply to the College of Menominee Nation growth
and cultivation of industrial hemp for the purpose of engaging in
agricultural or academic research upon application for such a waiver
by the College of Menominee Nation.
A.
The Department shall report annually to the Legislature on the fee
amount, the acres of industrial hemp in production, and the revenue
generated from industrial hemp.
B.
The Department must report to the Legislature on the implementation
of this chapter and on the commercialization of industrial hemp on
the Menominee Reservation and elsewhere in the world, and recommend
any changes to this chapter deemed appropriate.
Neither industrial hemp nor any product made from industrial
hemp intended to be put into the stream of commerce and which will
be produced for human consumption or absorption shall be sold to any
person under the age of 18.
A.
Except as authorized by this chapter by a validly licensed grower,
it is unlawful for any person or entity to knowingly or intentionally
cultivate, grow, manufacture, traffic, distribute, dispense or deliver,
or possess with the intent to manufacture, distribute, dispense, or
deliver, industrial hemp.
A.
Notwithstanding § 307-6B, any enrolled tribal member or entity wholly owned by an enrolled tribal member or members that has been issued a license to grow industrial hemp by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection shall receive a license under this chapter upon:
C.
Any tribal license issued to a person or entity pursuant to § 307-14A shall only be valid so long as the Wisconsin license is valid.
D.
Failure of the licensee to comply with the Wisconsin license requirements regarding testing of THC levels shall be deemed a violation of this Chapter 307.
E.
Results of all testing of THC levels shall be provided to the Department
within 48 hours of receipt by the licensee.
F.
All documentation and information required to be provided to the
Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trace, and Consumer Protection
by the licensee pursuant to Wisconsin rules shall be also provided
to the Department at the same time.
