Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell has joined a bipartisan coalition of 38 state attorneys general calling on Congress to close what they describe as a “hemp loophole” in the 2018 Farm Bill that has enabled the sale of unregulated, intoxicating THC products across the country – often referred to as gas station weed.

In a letter sent last Friday to leaders of the congressional appropriations and agriculture committees, the state attorneys general said the 2018 law’s current definition of hemp has been “wrongly exploited by bad actors to sell recreational synthetic THC products” in convenience stores and gas stations nationwide

“Intoxicating hemp-derived THC products have inundated communities throughout our states due to a grievously mistaken interpretation of the 2018 Farm Bill’s definition of ‘hemp’ that companies are leveraging to pursue profits at the expense of public safety and health,” the attorneys general write in their letter.

The letter urges Congress to clarify the federal definition of hemp “to leave no doubt that these harmful products are illegal and that their sale and manufacture are criminal acts.”

The group of signatories includes both Democrats and Republicans, among them Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, as well as many others.

The bipartisan letter argues that companies are chemically manipulating hemp to create synthetic cannabinoids such as delta-8, delta-10, THC-O, and HHC — substances the attorneys general say can be more intoxicating than traditional marijuana, which remains a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law.

“These products are being sold nationwide without consistent age restrictions, labeling standards, or safety requirements and are frequently packaged as gummies, candies, and beverages designed to appeal to young children,” the letter says.

Public health officials in several states have reported increases in accidental poisonings linked to these hemp-derived products. The attorneys general cited data from Indiana showing a 41 percent increase in cannabinoid-related poison control calls between 2022 and 2024, with incidents involving minor cannabinoids like delta-8 rising more than 2,400 percent over the same period.

The coalition argues that state-level bans alone cannot address the problem because online sales and interstate shipping allow the products to evade local restrictions.

“Congress must act to salvage the 2018 Farm Bill’s laudable legalization of commercial hemp from the psychoactive hemp industry’s spoliation of the Bill’s hemp provision,” the letter said.

The state attorneys general maintain that tightening the definition of hemp would not harm legitimate farmers, as industrial hemp products “do not contain intoxicating levels of THC."

Campbell’s signature marks the Massachusetts Attorney General’s participation in one of the broadest bipartisan public health appeals of the year, uniting officials from liberal and conservative states alike in an effort to restrict hemp-derived intoxicants that have spread in recent years.

Massachusetts has seen hemp-based THC products sold at gas stations, tobacco shops, and even restaurants due to the 2018 Farm Bill's legalization of hemp-based THC products. The city of Springfield in western Massachusetts responded by banning such products in June 2025.

Campbell's office could not be reached for comment this past weekend.