>>This week on NewsNight, Florida's hemp industry reacts to a decision by Governor DeSantis to veto a bill that would have banned Delta-8 and certain other products.

NewsNight starts now.

[MUSIC] Hello, I'm Steve Mort and welcome to NewsNight where we take a deep dive into the stories and issues that matter to central Florida and how they shape our community.

First tonight, Florida's hemp industry.

Governor DeSantis recently vetoed a bipartisan bill passed by the legislature that would have added tough regulation to hemp products in the state.

It would have banne certain euphoria inducing hemp products such as Delta-8 THC, and placed restrictions on those that remain legal.

Hemp and marijuana are both cannabis plants, but hemp doesn't contain more than 0.3% THC, not enough to produce a high.

Here's the rub, though.

Delta-8 THC, which does give users the sensation of being high, can be manufactured from CBD, which is bountiful in hemp plants.

And because hemp is not marijuana, it can be sold widely in states like Florida with few regulations.

Supporters of the vetoed bills say sensible regulations are neede to govern the sale of products that health officials say could be harmful.

Opponents say the bill woul have burdened small businesses, damaged a lucrative industry, and simply benefited large marijuana dispensary chains.

Well, NewsNight spoke this week with Sixto Samudio, the owner of a CBD store in Casselberry.

>>In the case of that bill that the bill passed and there would have been detrimental for industry.

For ourselves, we would most likely would end up closing the store and not being able to help many other patients and customers that come into our store and benefit from our products and the standpoint that the product helps a lot of people from many different issues.

You know, anything from anxiety to pain to different illnesses that they have and, you know, would have been very detrimental to their health and well-being.

Certain things are good in the bill.

You know, like we talking about the cartoon characters, so different things, they cater to children or attract children.

That's something that we should have more companies doing their due diligence in, not changing their label in the products.

They're labeling the product also as well, you know, be a little bit more certain of the amount of milligrams there are in the product and the dosage through the products.

In order for customers to be more aware of what what is it that they take in and how much are they taking of the product.

I will say when they came to the Delta products, some of their stuf kind of I would say overstepped because those are products that help a lot of people.

When it comes to problems one is probably I can mention a lot is it happens a lot with adults is sleep.

A lot of people suffer from insomnia.

So a lot of the customers come in and we pair them with different product that are based with CBD and CBM.

Those cannabinoids put together and help people.

They get the restful nights of sleep.

We actually got four customers, three of them that their children suffer from, from seizures and another one is an adult.

They suffer from seizures as well and they get great relief from the product.

It has helped them a lot, especially for the children, one on one momm and the child is gone on to live and are almost living a normal life.

I mean, he's able to go out and play and do different things without the parents having to worry the child, having a seizure and maybe hurt himself or anything like that.

So it's something that is very helpful for a lot of the parent and they have a peace of mind.

>>The perspective of a central Florida CBD retailer.

Speaking with NewsNight intern Emily Ching.

We did reach ou to the Republican state Senator Colleen Burton of Lakeland, who sponsored the bill, vetoed by the governor, but we did not hear back.

So let's get into the issue in depth now.

Joining me in the studio this week, Joe Mario Pedersen covers health for Central Florida Public Media.

Thank you so much for coming in, Joe Mario.

>>Glad to be here.

>>Really appreciate it.

Ezzy Castro for the first time reporter at WKMG News 6.

Thanks for coming in, good to see you.

Curtis McCloud from Spectrum News 13.

Thanks for coming in, Curtis.

Good to see you guys today.

Curtis, let me start with you.

Spectrum News has been following this story as well.

I mean, give us a broad overview of wha this legislation would have done had it been signed by the governor.

>>Yes.

So if this had been signe into law by the governor, what this would have done, it would have cracked down o those products to THC products that were specifically mad with Delta-8, Delta-10.

And it also would have said, hey, look, be mindful of the type of packaging you put on these products, because what they're trying to do here is not make it enticing for children or youth.

>>And he seemed to suggest he kind of favored that, you know, product that maybe appeal to children.

>>Right.

Right.

He said he did.

But that's what the this would have cracked down on.

And it's all about puttin those regulatory steps in place so that, you know, you can kind of monitor and kind of like I don't want to say streamline, but kind of put some parameters on the industry here.

But as we saw, the governor saw different to not to not sign that bill.

>>I mean we just heard from that hemp retailer, Sixto Samudio I mean, what has Spectrum News been getting in terms of reaction?

>>Well, we are hearin from a lot of people say that, you know, hey, this obviously they didn't want to see this happen and they are grateful that i was not signed into law because just as we heard in the clip that you all spoke with, it would have greatly impacted, you know, the business here in that particular industry.

And that's one of the things that they were trying to hopefully not happen where a lot of those individuals, small business owners, they would have been greatly impacted by this.

>>Yeah let's get into this, Joe Mario, this bill would have banned Delta-8 THC product that are produced from hemp CBD.

Right.

Critics feared that that had may have ensnared other CBD products that sort of don't produce a high like Charlotte's Web, for example.

And I wonder what proponents of hemp say are the health benefits of products like that.

>>Yeah.

So I mean, as far as those benefits are concerned, you know how it's marketed and why consumers are so interested in them.

It's supposed to relieve stress supposed to relieve some pain, help sharpen focus and you know, probably give you a healthy night of sleep.

They also claim that it can help with some more complex issues like depression, autoimmune disorders and even epilepsy.

So what kind of a whole array of different things.

>>News 6 has also been following this story, Ezzy.

>>The governor cited the potential economic impact of signing that hemp bill.

What does the governo want to see happen going forward instead, in terms of devising merit?

It's not like he doesn't want regulations.

>>Right.

Well, I want to say I mean, I think you guys agre that, you know, the governor, we didn't thin he was going to take this route but he sure did.

And I think the biggest thing here is he said that this bill would inflict small businesses and retail businesses across the state, leaving hundreds without jobs, as we heard from the clip that you had earlier.

So these businesses really did urge the governor to veto this bill.

And so the hemp business is an industry that has ranked billions of dollars.

So imagine taking that away from the state of Florida.

So I think that this woul definitely impact the economy.

And he suggested that the Florida legislator legislature would focus more on sensible regulatory framework to hemp and hemp derived products.

>>Basically urging them to go back and take take, take a second look at this, I guess.

I mean, there have been alarm bells raised about hemp in terms of a treatment for a various for a range of medical conditions.

I mean, I wonder what those concerns are, particularly with products that contain those sort of psychoactive cannabinoids.

>>Yeah.

So to make note, this is not an FDA regulated product.

Right.

And the FDA has actually done studies on hemp products to see what sorts of effects come about from this.

And in one study where hemp was being ingested, about 66% of those part of the study experience adverse effects.

And those those effects could range from anywhere between, you know, experiencing anxiety to hallucinations to blacking out and losing consciousness entirely.

And one of the reasons why the FDA is, you know, I guess to borrow your words, you know, ringing those alarm bells is marketers will use different chemicals synthesizing into this product, right.

To change the color and make it more marketable.

And these chemicals are household products that potential really could be harmful to those consuming them.

>>Interesting.

Let's pivot this to the marijuana issue.

Medical marijuana is already legal in Florida, but that industry is highly regulated in contrast to the hemp industry.

How does obtaining medical marijuana, Joe Mario, differ from buying hemp products right now?

>>So pretty night and day comparison, right?

Like for one, you don't need a license of any kin to pursue any sort of hemp CBD.

Really, you just have to be 21, go to a place that sells it and you can purchase whatever you want right over the counter, whether that's a gum, lotion, vape products, you know, as far as you know some of the differences there go CBD has I think less than 1% of THC, which is of course the agent responsible for producing a high.

I think it's about like .03 >>.

3%.

That's right.

>>That's right.

And it is far as that's concerned, you know, it's a low dosage, but you can buy as much as you want.

Really There's no restriction on that.

>>Curtis, the governor opposes a constitutional amendment to legalize recreational marijuana.

By vetoing, this is where i gets into the politics, right?

I mean, by vetoing this bill that cracks down on euphoria inducing hemp.

I mean, is he essentially helping a major competitor to the pot industry?

>>I mean, pretty much it seems like that's what he's trying to do to kind of like now he even recently he said, hey, you know, this is all about, you know, just trying to regulate, putting those kind of like what he's saying to the legislature, hey, I'm not saying we don't do some regulations here.

Go back and take a look at this.

But obviously he doesn't - he wants to kind of make sure that, you know, he doesn't want to see this amendment come into fruition.

>>Yeah.

>>And also by vetoing this bill, it does kind of help one of their main competitors stay alive.

>>No kidding.

I mean, does it doe it kind of take the steam out of out of that effort to pass a constitutional amendment, do you think?

>>I think he definitely had a plan here, you know, because he wants to you know, he says the hemp industry he thinks that would finance the campaign against Amendment 3.

He said, okay, we'll do this so we can maybe get to this.

I feel like, you know, and again, Amendment 3 would legalize recreational marijuana for anyone 21 and older.

So just to remind folks and I think that the point here, too, is a lot of people don't know that the hemp industry and the recreational marijuana industry are two different almost two different things.

>>For sure.

>>Yeah, they are so and especially the way, way people perceive it, too.

>>Correct.

>>It's that that has a lot to do with it too.

And I think that it'll b very interesting to see.

>>Yeah.

>>As we inch closer to November how the this goes.

>>Two distinct industries and competitors for sure.

And another interesting subject to watch as we approach the November election.

No doubt.

But you can find links to the hemp bill vetoed by the Governor and the Hemp Farming Act passed by Congress in 2018 on our website, wucf.org/newsnight Okay.

Next tonight, the US Supreme Court this week agreed to take up a case that could have profound effects on the law in Florida, which imposes restriction on transgender care for minors.

It's a piece of legislation that already faces a very uncertain future after a federal judge struck down as unconstitutional Florida's ban on gender affirming care for trans children.

The same judge last year threw out the state's ban on Medicaid payment for gender dysphoria treatment.

The DeSantis administration is appealing both rulings.

But as the nation' highest court prepares to weigh in on the Tennessee law, a decision in that case coul upend a variety of restrictions passed in recent year in Republican controlled states.

The Biden administratio is challenging a federal appeals court ruling allowing Tennessee's law and another in Kentucky to take effect.

Tennessee and more than 20 other states have passed pieces of legislation that target medical care for transgender people.

The Supreme Court will hea arguments over the Tennessee law that restricts hormone therapy and puberty blockers for transgender children.

The high court ruled in 2020 that sex discrimination laws protect gay and trans people and allowed a transgender gir to participate in girls sports.

But it's also turned away challenges to restrictions on school bathroom use for transgender students.

All right.

Well, let's get into this, Joe Mario, you've obviously covered this issue really closely.

Let's start with that recent federal court ruling on Florida's law.

What did the judge say in his ruling and what does it cover?

>>Right.

So that's that's Judge Robert Hinkle.

And what he said was that thi was not only unconstitutional, but also that the law unfairly discriminates against transgender people.

Now, what the ruling will do is it will restore health rights back to those seeking these therapies.

And as far as those rights are concerned, the way this law worke is it restricted who could give not only who could receive the therapy, right?

But the way that it controlled that was by restricting who could actually administer the therapy.

So like hormone replacement therapy, for example.

The law said that HRT could only be provided by physicians and traditionally clinics relied on nursing practitioners to administer this therapy.

It was the most accessible way to receive that therapy.

And when they no longer had access to that, it really dried u where you could get this from.

So this law or this ruling, rather, returns this back to HRT, back to clinics.

Right.

It also allows minors to receive puberty blockers.

So it returns back to a status quo, essentially.

>>I mean, News 6 has covered this story as well, obviously, Ezz I mean, the courts have blocked similar pieces of legislation in other states.

But I wonder what makes the ruling on Florida's law particularly significant?

>>Well, I'm going to piggyback from what Joe said.

I mean, I think the law blocked puberty blockers for minors.

That's a big thing.

And it also restricted health care workers that can prescrib gender affirming care to adults and only allowing physicians to provide that care.

So I feel like that law stands out more here in Florida compared t maybe the other states as well.

But, I mean, there's just there is a lot going on with this legislation right here, which we've been covering significant significantly for months and months.

>>And Florida sort of has been at the forefront o that push in Republican states.

I mean, Curtis, you guys have been getting reaction to that federal judge's ruling on Florida's law.

What are you hearing?

>>Well, you know, of course, we've been talking to some of these provider and providers of some of those some of those those services to members of the transgender community.

And a lot of them say, hey they count this as a win.

This has helped alleviat a lot of the stresses they've been seein in their offices, creating backlogs in waitlists, and they've kind of seen that, okay, hey, we can operate.

Kind of piggybacking off of what Joe said, you know, this is this is a relief for them because they for so long were shut out.

So.

>>B ut what about the DeSantis administration?

What do they think?

>>Oh, we we know the they want to appeal right away.

They don't agree with this.

And we know that the governor has been very strong opinionated about what he wants and says he wants to protect the children of Florida.

That's always been his thing.

We've been to his pres conferences.

Any time that's brought up that is something that he always answers.

>>Talk about that a lot.

What have you been hearing, Joe Mario, from those that practice this line of medicine?

What do health providers tell you?

>>To put it very simply they're very excited about this.

I think it shoul be noted that any any clinic that was previously providin these therapies was not forced to.

They were providin these therapies because they absolutely wanted to.

Right.

So there's there's a lot of excitement in the community as far as that goes.

One clinic that I was speakin to, 26 Health here in Orlando, I think four days after Hinckle's ruling, they put out a press release that they were going to be returnin to these practices right to HRT.

And I think that was at 4:00 on a Friday.

Within the hour, they alread had calls from previous patients who told them, I haven't had treatment since you were prevented from being able to provide it to me.

I'm very excited about doing this.

And by this Monday, they will have provided their very first appointment again.

>>But also uncertainty of course, with the US Supreme Court's likely to have the final say on this issue.

Curtis, can we draw any conclusions, do you think, about what the justices might do given their previous positions on sort of LGBTQ issues?

>>And that's the thing.

See, we're looking at those prior cases.

I know one Bosto Bostock versus Clayton County.

>>Yes.

>>You know, we look a little bit at that.

They kind of glean from what might happen here and the the things that happene with that particular case here.

And one would say that, okay, maybe they may, you know, uphold.

But the other way you look at it, you know, this is we're talking about a Republican-- >>A very conservative.

>>I should say, conservative Supreme Court.

Let me say that, conservative Supreme Court.

So based off of that, it may be unlikely, but it could go either way, though.

I think I think we'll have to wait and see exactly kind of what may what may be what may happen.

>>It's a very interesting Supreme Court to watch.

>>It will.

And the thing about this, too it's not supposed to be taken up until close to the election, too.

So a lot going on.

>>A lot going on.

>>That stretch of time.

>>Another issue that's-- >>We're going to be busy in November.

>>Very busy.

Right.

Okay.

>>We always want to hear your thought on the news of the week as well.

Be sure to visit us on social media we're at WUCF TV on Facebook and Instagram.

And we have a new handle on X.

You can find us there @NewsNightWUCF.

Okay.

Finally tonight the Orlando Utilities Commission says it wants to shake up the way it bills customers.

OUC says it hopes to charge mor for electricity at peak times.

And like other utilities, it's proposing to pay customers with solar panels less for the excess energy those homes put back into the grid, a practice known as net metering.

Well, I spoke with the Orlando Sentinel's Kevin Spear, who's been covering the story.

>>What they want to d is engage the future of energy, and that is getting away from fossil fuels and embracing renewables.

And here in Florida, that generally means solar power.

It's a tough road and what they want to do is line up their billing practices to facilitate that as much as possible.

>>Well so how would this work, though?

How would people pay more at peak times?

And what what is their goal with that?

Are they just aiming to change consumers energy consumption habits?

>>In brief, they want to make energy electricity more costly during the hottest times of the day when everybody' running their air conditioners and less costly at night or early in the morning and so forth.

They're not trying to get people to turn their air conditioners off, bu they want people to think about when they use their electricity and maybe late at night or early in the morning, they can run their dishwasher, do their laundry, charge your car and shift their electricity usage to parts of the day when electricity is slightly less costly.

>>But you write about this effort to phase ou fossil fuels in favor of solar.

But of course, at the same time, solar customers are some of them at least, are angry with OUC and other utilities for the way that the utilities want to pay them less for the amount of energy, the excess energy that their solar panels make that goes back into the grid.

Why does the OUC want to pay them less?

>>Yeah, that feels like to a lot of customers like a betrayal.

The utility contends that you the homeowner, you're not paying for all of the wire and transformers and all that.

All of the infrastructur that moves electricity around.

You've only got panels.

So they say the utility says that because you are not having to pay for all of the act of producing electricity, you shouldn't get pai the full price for electricity.

>>Well, how does the utility answer the criticis that that just disincentivizes people to get solar panel to to promote a type of energy generation that they themselves say they want?

>>They don't answer that very well.

What they're trying to do today now is to offer batteries storage so homes and programs that incentivize purchases of batteries so that if you have solar panels on your house, you put that extra electricity in a battery and you use it during the peak time of day.

But in terms of really encouraging people to put a lot of solar panels on their rooftops, not so much right now.

>>Kevin Spear there from the Orlando Sentinel.

Mario, let me come to you first on this one.

Why does the OUC say that now in particular is the time to be doing this?

>>Yes.

So now is a great time to take a look at the way it does billing for for individuals.

So you can be aware of you know, what time of the days are you using really big energy products, right.

Like, when are you what times are you charging your car?

What times are you using the washing machine?

If you have a pool, what times are using the pool pump?

Right.

So be aware of those ahea of time before these peak hour charges come into play.

And, you know, maybe think accordingly of whe to actually use those products.

>>I mean, Spectru has been following this as well.

You guys went to a publi workshop, right, on OUC's plans from that event.

Do they seem to be going down well with the public or not so much?

>>Not so much.

See, I think anytime you tal about potential hike hike rates, people get a little nervous, especially in this day and age in this economy.

You know, that's just one more thing they're going to have to deal with.

How to pay for new.

I know the way this is structured that some people will see potential rate increases, others may see decreases.

It just kind of depends on where you fall.

But overall, the people, a lot of them saying that they don't they don't buy that they're going to those who may get the may may see decreases or may not see increases.

They're thinkin that this is going to be a rate hike overall for everybody.

>>I mean, specifically on solar, Ezzy, I mean, News 6 has been kind of following that fallout from the proposed net metering changes.

From OUC has that been a strong pushbac from what you guys are hearing?

>>Definitely, I think just last week we spoke to Orlando Councilwoman Patty Sheehan, and she was very vocal about this very upset.

She argues that this significant cut would encourage more residents to, well, not encourage them to adopt to solar energy, which is something, you know, she's very vocal about, you know, and and she even wrote a letter to the Orlando utility commissioner saying that she was going to fight this and not back down.

So we know that definitely from that side, we we are getting some feedback.

>>Yeah.

And she's been a big proponent of solar energy for sure.

>>Yes.

>>What do we know about how much solar energy Florida generates?

Which part of the portfolio, say, in comparison to other states?

>>Yes.

Florida does not disappoint.

It lives up to the Sunshine State name in this regard.

Right.

It is the top three as far as producers go, falling behind California.

And Texas, of course.

>>Yes.

>>I think in 2023, it produced 7% or 7% cam from those solar energy farms.

Right.

And, you know, in that top five list, you know, it's California as I said, for Texas, Florida, Nevada, North Carolina.

So it's huge up there.

>>Solar energ is a big alternative fuel source here in Florida.

Out west, often times it's wind energy.

It's the it' where you can get that energy.

I mean, we're talking about OUC here as you but you've covered utilities and how they're dealing with solar in other places.

What have you learned?

>>Well I went to the city of Mount Dora a few months ago, and they introduced me to their community solar program, which we were talking about, I was in Lake County earlier this morning.

And I actually passed by their solar panel farm.

And so what they do is this is a program where n panels are needed at your home.

They're strictly using the power from the farm.

But however, this is for a certain amount of residents, they were able to apply early in the year and use that.

So pretty cool stuff, but it is limited.

But this is something initiative that the city is taking steps towards solar panels and you know, collecting that energy.

>>Well, it's a very interesting industry to watch and we'll certainly keep an eye on it as we go forward and our energy needs become more pressing here in the state of Florida.

Before we go, a reminder to be sure to check out more NewsNight content on our website.

wucf.org/newsnight and also on the WUCF YouTube channel at WUCF TV.

That is all the time we have for this week.

My thanks to Joe Mario Pedersen from Central Florida Public Media, Ezzy Castro from WKMG News 6, and Curtis McCloud from Spectrum News 13.

Thank you so much for coming in, guys.

>>Thanks.

>>Appreciate your time today.

Meanwhile, as hurricane season ramps up, we'll return next Friday at 8:30 with an encore of our recent series, From Crisis to Conservation, looking a resiliency efforts in our state.

Meanwhile, for all of us here at NewsNight take care and have a great week.