A provision to help hemp farmers get crop insurance has been added to a federal disaster-relief bill.
A bill that passed in the Senate on Thursday includes an amendment to ensure hemp farmers access to crop insurance prior to the 2020 growing season.
The provision states that the Federal Crop Insurance Corp. shall offer coverage under the whole-farm revenue protection insurance policy for hemp by next year.
The legislation has moved to the House, where the$19.1 billion package stalled Friday.
The hemp amendment came from Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. McConnell steered hemp legalization to the desk of President Donald Trump last year and has since been trying to expedite hemp’s inclusion in services available to other crops.
In April, McConnell wrote to four federal banking and financial institutions asking them to open financial services to the hemp industry.
