On January 12, 2026, Governor Phil Murphy signed Senate Bill 4509 into law, ushering in a sweeping reform of New Jersey’s hemp laws and establishing a regulatory framework for intoxicating hemp products (“IHPS”) that have proliferated across the Garden State. The bill’s sponsors aimed to close a long-standing loophole created by the 2018 federal Farm Bill, which permitted IHPs to be sold widely with no oversight. The enactment of SB 4509 represents the latest and most consequential chapter in New Jersey’s multi-year effort to regulate these products.
Two years ago, New Jersey attempted to regulate IHPs but its efforts were unsuccessful. In September 2024, New Jersey enacted legislation prohibiting the sale of IHPs to minors and imposing new restrictions on their distribution. Just days before the law was scheduled to take effect, a federal judge issued a permanent injunction blocking most of its substantive provisions. In Loki Brands LLC v. Platkin, the District Court of New Jersey held that the law’s definition of “intoxicating hemp products” expressly discriminated against out-of-state hemp by prohibiting its sale in New Jersey. The court concluded that the law violated the Dormant Commerce Clause by penalizing out-of-state producers and manufacturers. It further held that the statute conflicted with—and was, therefore, preempted by—the 2018 Farm Bill because it effectively transformed federally legal hemp into a controlled substance simply by virtue of being shipped through New Jersey.
The federal landscape concerning hemp has dramatically shifted since Loki was decided. As part of the 2025 federal spending bill, Congress overhauled federal hemp standards by including a provision banning the sale of any hemp-derived THC product containing more than 0.3% total THC—not just delta-9 THC as permitted under the 2018 Farm Bill—on a dry weight basis. Congress also narrowed the definition of legal hemp to exclude products containing cannabinoids that “were synthesized or manufactured outside the plant” and prohibited consumer products containing more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container. Taken together, these changes render virtually all existing IHPs unlawful under federal law. The new federal prohibition is set to go into effect on November 13, 2026.
New Jersey’s newly enacted law is calibrated to align with these updated federal standards. Under SB 4509, hemp may not contain more than 0.3% total THC, including delta-8, delta-10, THCA, and similar cannabinoids, and IHPs may not contain more than 0.4 milligrams of THC per container. Products that exceed these thresholds are deemed cannabis and fall under the jurisdiction of the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (“CRC”). As a result, the sale of such products will require a state-issued cannabis license and compliance with the same regulatory requirements imposed on licensed cannabis businesses operating in New Jersey.
While the law took effect on January 13, 2026, its implementation will be a phased approach. To allow the CRC time to develop its regulatory scheme, and to mitigate the economic impact on existing IHP retailers, the statute provides a grace period through April 13, 2026, during which time current sellers must liquidate their inventory. The law does, however, carve out a narrow exception for intoxicating hemp beverages, which may continue to be sold at licensed liquor stores until November 13, 2026 when the federal prohibition goes into effect. At that point, any beverage exceeding the new THC limits will be regulated as cannabis.
With the passage of SB 4509, New Jersey has signaled an end to the sale of unregulated IHPs. By harmonizing New Jersey law with federal hemp rules and addressing the constitutional defects identified in Loki, the Legislature has likely crafted a framework designed to withstand legal scrutiny while prioritizing consumer safety and regulatory clarity.
