Colorado governor signs bill to regulate kratom sales

Kyle Jaeger,

Marijuana Moment

The governor of Colorado has signed a bill that provides a regulatory framework for the legal sale of kratom. The move was celebrated by the American Kratom Association (AKA) and is similar to measures in other states that provide age restrictions, quality control, and reporting of any unusual experiences of customers.

- Seven other states have enacted similar measures.

- The trend among government agencies is to view kratom as a safe opioid alternative amid the ongoing overdose epidemic.

- Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D), as a member of Congress in 2017, pushed for federal agencies to research kratom’s health impacts. 

- Under the legislation, businesses that sell the plant would need to “register with the state Department of Revenue and disclose certain information regarding each of the kratom processor’s kratom products,” starting in July 2023. 

- The measure sets minimum safety standards for kratom products, and prohibits its sale to people under 21

- It requires kratom sellers to notify regulators if they learn of a reported adverse effect attributed to its products.

- It also requires the state to create a database of companies that sell the product.

- Mac Haddow, senior fellow on public policy at AKA, said “The passage and signage of this bill shows the commitment of Colorado lawmakers to protecting the increasingly growing number of kratom consumers in the state. Ensuring kratom products are pure and unadulterated is critically important to protecting consumers … and will get us one step closer to federal kratom regulation.”

- Kratom is also receiving attention at the federal level. U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI), at a congressional hearing last month, expressed appreciation for the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) for funding research. Kratom has “helped many people to get off of opioids,” Pocan said.

- Kratom is not scheduled under the federal Controlled Substances Act or under international drug treaties. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has considered putting restrictions on the substance, but it has faced resistance and has been unable to do so at this point.