Summary — HB 1566 (North Dakota) — Kratom study and proposed regulation
Status
- Introduced: December 10, 2024. Filed with Secretary of State: April 28, 2025.
- Final enrolled language (as amended during session) directs a legislative management study on kratom regulation to occur during the 2025–26 interim and to report to the 70th Legislative Assembly.
- Legislative action records are mixed; the bill was considered in multiple committees and amended repeatedly. Official action shows the bill died in a House committee at sine die adjournment (May 5, 2025).
Purpose and intent
- To study potential uses of kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) and to examine how the state might implement regulations governing production, manufacturing, distribution, labeling, testing and retail sale of kratom products. Some earlier committee versions would have created a comprehensive regulatory framework; later amendments narrowed the immediate requirement to a study and report.
Key provisions (from versions considered during the session)
Note: the bill went through multiple versions. Below are the principal regulatory concepts that were drafted and debated; some appeared in earlier engrossed versions but did not remain in the final study-only enrollment language.
- Definitions: kratom, kratom product, kratom extract, kratom processor, kratom retailer, independent testing laboratory, and “synthesized material.”
- Product standards and prohibitions:
- Ban on synthetic kratom alkaloids and limits on certain alkaloids (e.g., 7‑hydroxymitragynine capped at 2% of alkaloid fraction).
- Prohibition on products intended for combustion, vaporization or injection; prohibition on adulteration with controlled substances, synthetic cannabinoids/cathinones, psychoactive compounds, or cytochrome P450 inhibitors.
- Requirement that products list ingredients and alkaloid amounts and include safety warnings (e.g., not for minors, pregnant or breastfeeding persons; may be habit‑forming; FDA not evaluated).
- Testing and registration:
- Independent laboratory analysis for alkaloid content, heavy metals and other contaminants; facility/process requirements consistent with 21 C.F.R. §111 (in some drafts).
- Product registration and public registry of registered products on agency website.
- Licensure and fees:
- Retail licensing and registration fees (drafts included $50 annual retailer license and $25 per-product registration fee).
- Age limits and penalties:
- Drafts varied: some versions prohibited sales to under-18; others set minimum age at 21.
- Violations proposed to carry penalties ranging from administrative fines up to class A misdemeanors and class C felonies for unlicensed distribution in some drafts.
- Agency administration and appropriation:
- Authority for a state agency (drafts referenced the Agriculture Commissioner or a food/consumer protection commissioner) to adopt rules.
- A Senate amendment included a proposed appropriation (biennium 2025–27) of $580,808 and 2.00 FTE to the Agriculture Commissioner to implement regulation.
Who would be affected
- Kratom processors, manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers operating in North Dakota.
- Independent testing laboratories (requirements and accreditation).
- Consumers (access, labeling information, age-limits).
- State agencies (rulemaking, product registry, enforcement) and potential budgetary/ personnel impacts if a regulatory program were adopted.
Procedural / timeline aspects
- The enrolled (final) bill required the Legislative Management to study kratom regulation during the 2025–26 interim and report recommendations, including draft legislation, to the 70th Legislative Assembly.
- Because the bill was amended repeatedly and committee actions varied, the legislature did not adopt the full regulatory framework during the 2025 session; the matter was left to the interim study process (though official records indicate the bill ultimately did not advance past a House committee at sine die).
Implication
- The bill reflects legislative interest in creating a state regulatory structure for kratom but—after negotiation and amendments—primarily directs an interim study to inform any future statutory regulatory scheme. The study provides the vehicle for agencies, stakeholders, public health and law‑enforcement interests to evaluate product standards, consumer protections, enforcement needs, and fiscal impacts before adopting permanent rules or statutes.
