Connecticut HB 5350: AN ACT CONCERNING CANNABIS, HEMP AND INFUSED BEVERAGE REGULATION.

Bill Text

Substitute House Bill No. 5350 
 
Public Act No. 26-8 
 
 
AN    ACT    CONCERNING    CANNABIS,    HEMP    AND    INFUSED 
BEVERAGE REGULATION. 
Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  in  General 
Assembly convened: 
 
Section  1. Subsection  (q)  of  section  1-1  of  the  general  statutes  is 
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 
1, 2026): 
(q) Except as otherwise specifically defined, the words "agriculture" 
and "farming" include cultivation of the soil, dairying, forestry, raising 
or harvesting any agricultural or horticultural commodity, including the 
raising,  shearing,  feeding,  caring  for,  training  and  management  of 
livestock, including horses, bees, the production of honey, poultry, fur-
bearing  animals  and  wildlife,  and  the  raising  or  harvesting of  oysters, 
clams,   mussels,   other   molluscan   shellfish   or   fish;   the   operation, 
management, conservation, improvement or maintenance of a farm and 
its buildings, tools and equipment, or salvaging timber or cleared land 
of brush or other debris left by a storm, as an incident to such farming 
operations; the production or harvesting of maple syrup or maple sugar, 
or  any  agricultural  commodity,  including  lumber,  as  an  incident  to 
ordinary  farming  operations  or  the  harvesting  of  mushrooms,  the 
hatching  of  poultry,  or  the  construction,  operation  or  maintenance  of 
ditches,  canals,  reservoirs  or  waterways  used  exclusively  for  farming 

Substitute House Bill No. 5350 
 
Public Act No. 26-8 2 of 232 
 
purposes;  handling,  planting,  drying,  packing,  packaging,  processing, 
freezing, grading, storing or delivering to storage or to market, or to a 
carrier for transportation to market, or for direct sale any agricultural or 
horticultural commodity as an incident to ordinary farming operations, 
or, in the case of fruits and vegetables, as an incident to the preparation 
of such fruits or vegetables for market or for direct sale. The term "farm" 
includes  farm  buildings,  and  accessory  buildings  thereto,  nurseries, 
orchards,   ranges,   greenhouses,   hoophouses   and   other   temporary 
structures or other structures used primarily for the raising and, as an 
incident  to  ordinary  farming  operations,  the  sale  of  agricultural  or 
horticultural commodities. The terms "agriculture" and "farming" do not 
include the cultivation of cannabis, as defined in section [21a-420] 21a-
240, as amended by this act. The term "aquaculture" means the farming 
of  the  waters  of  the  state  and  tidal  wetlands  and  the  production  of 
protein   food,   including fish,   oysters,   clams,   mussels   and   other 
molluscan shellfish, on leased, franchised and public underwater farm 
lands. Nothing herein shall restrict the power of a local zoning authority 
under chapter 124. 
Sec. 2. Subparagraph (H) of subdivision (7) of subsection (c) of section 
7-148 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted 
in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 
(H) (i) Secure  the  safety  of  persons  in  or  passing  through  the 
municipality by regulation of shows, processions, parades and music; 
(ii) Regulate and prohibit the carrying on within the municipality of 
any trade, manufacture, business or profession which is, or may be, so 
carried on as to become prejudicial to public health, conducive to fraud 
and   cheating,   or   dangerous   to,   or   constituting an   unreasonable 
annoyance to, those living or owning property in the vicinity; 
(iii) Regulate auctions and garage and tag sales; 

Substitute House Bill No. 5350 
 
Public Act No. 26-8 3 of 232 
 
(iv) Prohibit, restrain, license and regulate the business of peddlers, 
auctioneers  and  junk  dealers  in  a  manner  not  inconsistent  with  the 
general statutes; 
(v) Regulate  and  prohibit swimming  or  bathing  in  the  public  or 
exposed places within the municipality; 
(vi) Regulate  and  license  the  operation  of  amusement  parks  and 
amusement  arcades  including,  but  not  limited  to,  the  regulation  of 
mechanical rides and the establishment of the hours of operation; 
(vii) Prohibit,  restrain,  license  and  regulate  all  sports,  exhibitions, 
public amusements and performances and all places where games may 
be played; 
(viii) Preserve  the  public  peace  and  good  order,  prevent  and  quell 
riots and disorderly assemblages and prevent disturbing noises; 
(ix) Establish a system to obtain a more accurate registration of births, 
marriages and deaths than the system provided by the general statutes 
in a manner not inconsistent with the general statutes; 
(x) Control insect  pests  or  plant  diseases  in  any  manner  deemed 
appropriate; 
(xi) Provide for the health of the inhabitants of the municipality and 
do  all  things  necessary  or  desirable  to  secure  and  promote  the  public 
health; 
(xii) Regu