The U.S. Senate's top leader wants to bring hemp production back into the mainstream by removing it from the list of controlled substances. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Monday that he'll introduce legislation to legalize hemp as an agricultural commodity.
The Republican made the announcement in his home state of Kentucky, which has been at the forefront of hemp's comeback.
Growing hemp without a federal permit has long been banned due to its classification as a controlled substance related to marijuana. Hemp and marijuana are the same species, but hemp has a negligible amount of THC, the psychoactive compound that gives marijuana users a high.
Hemp got a limited reprieve with the 2014 federal Farm Bill, which allows state agriculture departments to designate hemp projects for research and development. So far, more than 30 states have authorized hemp research.