Arkansas Act 629 of 2023 bans most psychoactive hemp products by classifying delta-8, delta-10, and any delta-9 THC above 0.3% as Schedule VI controlled substances under state law. In plain terms, the delta-8 gummies, vapes, and high-THC hemp extracts that used to sit on gas station shelves are now treated the same as marijuana. After the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals cleared the way for enforcement in June 2025, the ban is fully in effect, and possession or sale carries criminal penalties.
What Act 629 Makes Illegal
The law amended the Arkansas Uniform Controlled Substances Act to add several THC compounds to the Schedule VI list. Delta-8, delta-9, and delta-10 THC are all covered, along with their optical isomers.1Justia. Arkansas Code 5-64-215 – Substances in Schedule VI
The dividing line is concentration, and only for delta-9. A hemp-derived product with more than 0.3% delta-9 THC on a dry weight basis is illegal. Delta-8 and delta-10 THC are illegal at any concentration, because they fall under the synthetic substances provisions of the Schedule VI list. There is no personal-use amount that is safe to carry.
What You Can Still Buy or Sell Legally
Not every hemp product is banned, and the boundaries matter.
CBD products stay legal if they contain no more than 0.3% delta-9 THC on a dry weight basis, verified by an independent lab.1Justia. Arkansas Code 5-64-215 – Substances in Schedule VI A compliant CBD tincture or topical can still be made and sold, provided the business meets Arkansas’s testing, labeling, and permitting rules.
Industrial hemp grown for non-consumable uses like fiber, seed, and grain remains authorized, and the Arkansas Department of Agriculture continues to license growers, processors, and handlers for those purposes.
Medical marijuana is a separate program. Patients registered with Arkansas’s medical marijuana system can still buy THC products from licensed dispensaries. Act 629 does not touch that framework.
Criminal Penalties if You’re Caught With a Covered Product
Because the banned compounds now sit on Schedule VI, possession is prosecuted under the same statutes that apply to marijuana. The charge depends on weight and on whether prosecutors believe you meant to sell.
One detail trips a lot of people up: the weight that counts is the total weight of the product, including fillers and additives, not the weight of the THC itself.2Justia. Arkansas Code 5-64-419 – Possession of a Controlled Substance A two-ounce bag of gummies is a two-ounce quantity under the statute, even if the actual THC content is minimal.
If law enforcement believes you intended to deliver, the charges escalate quickly. Possession of a Schedule VI substance with the purpose to deliver breaks down this way:3Justia. Arkansas Code 5-64-436 – Possession of a Schedule VI Controlled Substance With the Purpose to Deliver4Justia. Arkansas Code 5-4-401 – Sentence5Justia. Arkansas Code 5-4-201 – Fines – Limitations on Amount
- 14 grams or less: Class A misdemeanor, up to one year in jail and a fine up to $2,500.
- More than 14 grams but less than 4 ounces: Class D felony, up to six years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.
- 4 ounces to under 25 pounds: Class C felony, three to ten years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.
- 25 pounds to under 100 pounds: Class B felony, five to twenty years in prison and a fine up to $15,000.
- 100 pounds to under 500 pounds: Class A felony, six to thirty years in prison and a fine up to $15,000.
A few packs of gummies can easily push past 14 grams by product weight. Someone who used to buy delta-8 casually now sits in misdemeanor territory for simple possession and risks a felony if a prosecutor argues intent to deliver.
Penalties for Selling or Giving Hemp Products to Minors
Act 629 and related statutes create a separate exposure for anyone who provides hemp-derived products to a minor. Selling, giving, or bartering a hemp-derived product to a minor is a Class A misdemeanor, carrying up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine.6Justia. Arkansas Code 20-56-411 – Providing Hemp-Derived Products to Minors Employees working inside a permitted retail location face a reduced penalty of up to $100 per violation. Minors cannot legally possess or buy these products, and using a fake ID to purchase them is a separate offense.
What Retailers Need to Stay Legal
If you want to keep selling compliant hemp products in Arkansas, Arkansas Tobacco Control (ATC), a division of the Department of Finance and Administration, runs the permitting and enforcement system for manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers.7Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Arkansas Tobacco Control
The permit costs $5,000 per year, and renewal is due by June 30.8State of Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Fiscal Impact Statement Bill SB533 Applicants have to pass a background check, and the list of disqualifying offenses is broad: felony controlled substance violations, violent crimes like battery, robbery, and kidnapping, sexual offenses, theft, forgery, financial identity fraud, arson, and burglary, among others.9Code of Arkansas Rules. 20 CAR 42-110 – List of Disqualifying Offenses
Every product sold has to be tested by an independent, third-party laboratory before distribution. The lab must issue a certificate of analysis confirming total delta-9 THC does not exceed 0.3% on a dry weight basis and giving a full chemical breakdown.10Justia. Arkansas Code 20-56-410 – Testing Without that certificate, the product cannot legally be sold.
Labels have to identify the manufacturer and distributor by name and state clearly that the product contains material derived from hemp rather than marijuana or medical marijuana.11Justia. Arkansas Code 20-56-409 – Advertising Marketing rules are also strict. Packaging and advertising cannot use imagery that appeals to children: no cartoon characters, superheroes, video game characters, unicorns, or mythical creatures. Product names, labels, and slogans cannot use the words “candy,” “cake,” “pie,” or “cupcakes,” and they cannot mimic the branding of foods aimed at children like breakfast cereals, juice drinks, or ice cream.
Why the Ban Is Now Being Enforced
Act 629 was tied up in federal litigation for roughly two years. A coalition of hemp businesses led by Bio Gen LLC sued, arguing that the 2018 federal Farm Bill preempted Arkansas from banning hemp products legal under federal law. A federal district court issued a preliminary injunction and blocked enforcement.
In June 2025, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that injunction and let the ban take full effect.12Justia. Bio Gen LLC v. Sanders, No. 23-3237 The court held that the Farm Bill contains a savings clause letting states regulate hemp more strictly than the federal government does, so federal legalization does not force state legalization. The court also rejected the vagueness argument, finding that terms like “synthetic substance” are defined by the specific list of compounds in the Schedule VI statute. Local prosecuting attorneys bring the criminal cases, and ATC handles regulatory enforcement.13Arkansas Attorney General. Attorney General Griffin Successfully Defends Arkansas’s Ban on Dangerous Psychoactive Hemp Products
If you still have delta-8 or delta-10 products sitting at home or on a shelf, they are Schedule VI controlled substances under Arkansas law today. Retailers that keep stocking them risk permit revocation, product seizure, and criminal charges. The only hemp inventory that remains lawful is compliant CBD and non-psychoactive hemp products, backed by a current ATC permit, a valid certificate of analysis for each product, child-appeal-free marketing, and clean compliance records.