Overview
- Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Carl Aveni issued a 14-day temporary restraining order that pauses Gov. Mike DeWine’s 90-day crackdown on so-called intoxicating hemp products.
- The pause allows many hemp-infused beverages to return to shelves, with breweries reporting whiplash as they reverse earlier product pullbacks.
- Aveni flagged concerns that the executive order relied on novel definitions of intoxicating hemp that do not exist in Ohio statute.
- DeWine argues these products put children at risk and is calling for rules that treat drinkable THC similar to beer or liquor.
- House Speaker Matt Huffman says the restart creates uncertainty but will not change the legislature’s timeline, pointing to regulatory gaps from the 2018 Farm Bill and Ohio’s voter-approved marijuana law.