Birmingham Mayor Woodfin Urges Governor to Revisit New Hemp Law
Warns HB445 could severely harm small businesses and working families.
Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin has called on Governor Kay Ivey to convene a special legislative session to revise HB 445, the recently-enacted hemp regulation bill. The mayor warned the law could severely harm small businesses and working families.
In a Facebook statement, Woodfin wrote:
“Governor Ivey should have done what even TX Governor Greg Abbott had the wisdom to do in Texas: veto an overreaching hemp ban that would devastate small businesses and working families.
“Instead, HB445 is now law – and unless it’s fixed, hundreds of businesses across Alabama will be forced to shut their doors in just eight days.
“Let me be very clear: this bill is broken. The Governor has the power to call a special session and fix it, and I strongly encourage her to do so. We cannot afford to return to a time of criminalization and confusion. This law does not promote public safety – it punishes progress and economic opportunity.
“And here’s what’s most disturbing: under this bill, a product that is legally purchased today will become a felony offense next week – while simple marijuana possession remains a misdemeanor. That’s not justice. That’s backward policy that will harm real people and overwhelm our local law enforcement with nonsense when they should be focused on violent crime and real threats to public safety.
“Alabama deserves better than this. We need to fix this law – and we need to do it now.” Woodfin concluded.
HB 445 sets new rules for consumable hemp products that contain THC. It limits THC to 10 mg per serving, prohibits sales to anyone under 21, imposes a 10% excise tax, and restricts sales to outlets licensed by the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board.
Woodfin argues the law’s restrictions are too harsh. He pointed out that products currently legal will soon result in felony charges, even as simple marijuana possession remains a misdemeanor.
Woodfin urged Ivey to use her authority to call a special session and correct what he called a “broken” law that punishes economic opportunity and risks returning the state to a policy of criminalization.
The hemp law at a glance (effective July 1, with full enforcement Jan. 1, 2026):
- Caps THC at 10 mg per edible serving and 40 mg per container
- Bans smokable hemp and synthetic cannabinoids
- Requires ABC Board licensing and local approval
- Imposes a 10% excise tax on retail prices
HB445 was roundly criticized by both hemp supporters, hemp industry and business leaders and prohibitionist social conservatives, for widely divergent reasons. Supporters and the hemp industry continue to insist these restrictions will devastate Alabama’s hemp market. Woodfin specifically warned they could push small entrepreneurs—particularly Black and brown business owners—out of the market. Business owners have echoed those concerns, saying the law risks pushing consumers toward black‑market products.
While the bill was still being considered, a coalition of conservative groups led by Eagle Forum and ALCAP urged the complete ban of all of these products, calling them a “public safety crisis.”
On May 9, the conservative think tank Alabama Policy Institute (API) called on Governor Ivey to veto HB445 or send it back to the Legislature. In a legislative update and press release dated May 9, API stated:
“The Alabama Legislature voted to legalize recreational marijuana in the State of Alabama this week. Marijuana is a Schedule 1 drug. API stands opposed the state condoning and taxing the illegal drug use of its citizens. Picking winners and losers with spotty regulation and low taxation isn't the answer. If this bill is signed, the real losers will be the citizens of Alabama dealing with the aftermath of drugs being sold legally statewide in grocery stores, in state sanctioned stores, and in stores in every community. Given the dangerous effects of psychoactive THC on humans and the potential of increased usage among Alabamians under its legalization the Alabama Policy Institute asks that Governor Ivey veto HB445 and that the Alabama Legislature ban psychoactive THC in our state.”
ALPolitics.com has reached out to the Governor’s office for comment on Mayor Woodfin’s call for a special session. At press time, we continue to await a response.
