PIERRE, S.D. – The Senate Health and Human Services Committee sent two high-profile substance bills to the full Senate on Wednesday without recommendation, an unusual outcome that followed extended debate over hemp-derived THC products and kratom.

The committee voted 7-0 to send Senate Bill 61, which would restrict hemp-derived intoxicants not used for medical purposes, to the Senate floor without recommendation. Later in the same meeting, lawmakers took the same action on Senate Bill 77, which would ban kratom and kratom products outright.

SB 61 drew the longest and most contentious discussion, with testimony focused on the bill’s proposed 0.4 milligram THC cap per container and its impact on CBD retailers.

Sen. John Carley, R-Piedmont, told the committee the bill is intended to limit psychoactive products to regulated medical cannabis dispensaries, not eliminate access.

“We’re not restricting it. We’re putting it at certain facilities. We’re for freedom,” Carley said. “But we’re also a common sense state.”

Opponents, including CBD retailers, countered that the per-container THC limit would effectively remove most full-spectrum CBD products from store shelves, even those that are non-intoxicating.

Matt Yde, who owns two CBD stores in Sioux Falls, said the bill would force him to close.

“All this bill is is a hemp and CBD ban. Straight up,” Yde said. “I would have to close my business that sells only CBD products instantly because it would take 90% of my products.”

Yde said many CBD products contain trace amounts of THC that exceed the proposed limit when measured per container, despite not producing intoxication.

“That’s why I’m saying this is actually a CBD ban, and it would close the stores that have well-tested, good, just CBD products instantly,” he said.

Several senators raised concerns about unintended consequences, including access for older residents who use CBD products for sleep or pain but would not qualify for a medical cannabis card.

Following debate, Sen. Randy Davis, R-District 9, moved to send SB 61 to the Senate floor without recommendation. The motion passed unanimously.

Later in the same meeting, the committee took up SB 77, which would ban kratom and kratom products and make possession or sale a Class 2 misdemeanor. After initial opposition defeated a motion to defer the bill, lawmakers voted to send SB 77 to the floor without recommendation as well.

Sending two bills to the floor without recommendation in a single committee meeting is uncommon and reflects unresolved divisions over regulation, enforcement, and consumer access.

Both measures now head to the full Senate for debate.