My name is Aline DeLucia.  I'm the Director of Public Policy for the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA).

And we appreciate the opportunity to comment on the implementation of the hemp provisions established by the 2018 Farm Bill.  NASDA represents the commissioners, secretaries, and directors of the State Departments of Agriculture in all 50 states and four territories.

NASDA members are regulatory partners of the USDA and the implementation of the farm bill, including the hemp program.  We'd like to start by thanking the USDA AMS team for their extraordinary outreach efforts to NASDA members and impacted stakeholders to better understand the different perspectives of this industry, and getting knowledge of the regulatory landscape in the states.

NASDA policies support the production, processing, and commercialization of hemp and encourages researching all aspects of hemp production to finished products.

Hemp production is expected to significantly grow in the next few years due to the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, and there'll be a significant shared state-federal authority over hemp cultivation and production with NASDA members splitting a critical regulatory role at the state level.

NASDA members will need guidance in a well-defined regulatory pathway from the federal agencies to exercise their regulatory authority under the 2018 Farm Bill, so NASDA encourages USDA to prioritize implementation of industrial hemp provisions of the 2018 Farm Bill, and to move as fast as possible so state departments of agriculture can submit their state plans and therefore provide clarity and direction to farmers and ranchers in their states.

We also urge USDA to work closely with other federal partners such as FDA and DEA to avoid potential conflicts that would negatively impact this emerging crop.

We're hopeful that USDA will establish a regulatory pathway that provides much needed clarity to the industry as well as the state co-regulators, while also giving states the flexibility to regulate the crops as they see fit.

NASDA greatly appreciates the opportunity to comment today and it's eager to work with USDA in the implementation of the hemp provisions of 2018 Farm Bill. Thank you so much for your time.