GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2025

H                                                                                                                                                    1

HOUSE BILL 328

 

 

Short Title:      Ban Delta-8 & Delta-9 on School Grounds.

(Public)

Sponsors:

Representatives Cunningham, Loftis, Lambeth, and Potts (Primary Sponsors).

For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.

Referred to:

Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House

March 10, 2025

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to ban delta‑8 and delta‑9 products from school grounds and to clarify that vapor products are banned on school grounds.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  Article 29A of Chapter 115C of the General Statutes reads as rewritten:

"Article 29A.

"Policy Prohibiting Use Of Tobacco and Hemp Products.

"§ 115C‑407.  Policy prohibiting tobacco and hemp product use in school buildings, grounds, and at school‑sponsored events.

(a)        Not later than August 1, 2008, local boards of education Governing bodies of public school units shall adopt, implement, and enforce adopt a written policy prohibiting at all times the use of any tobacco or hemp product by any person in school buildings, in school facilities, on school campuses, and in or on any other school property owned or operated by the local school administrative public school unit. The policy shall further prohibit the use of all tobacco and hemp products by persons attending a school‑sponsored event at a location not listed in this subsection when in the presence of students or school personnel or in an area where smoking is otherwise prohibited by law.

(b)        The policy shall include at least all of the following elements:

(1)        Adequate notice to students, parents, the public, and school personnel of the policy.

(2)        Posting of signs prohibiting at all times the use of tobacco and hemp products by any person in and on school property.

(3)        Requirements that school personnel enforce the policy.

(c)        The policy may permit tobacco or hemp products to be included in instructional or research activities in public school buildings if the activity is conducted or supervised by the faculty member overseeing the instruction or research and the activity does not include smoking, chewing, or otherwise ingesting the tobacco or hemp product.

(d)       The North Carolina Health and Wellness Trust Fund Commission shall work with local boards of education governing bodies of public school units to provide assistance with the implementation of this policy including providing information regarding smoking cessation and prevention resources. Nothing in this section, G.S. 143‑595 through G.S. 143‑601, or any other section prohibits a local board of education governing body of a public school unit from adopting and enforcing a more restrictive policy on the use of tobacco in school buildings, in school facilities, on school campuses, or at school‑related or school‑sponsored events, and in or on other school property.

(e)        For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:

(1)        Hemp product. – Products derived from hemp, as defined in G.S. 90‑87, and their synthetic counterparts that are designed, manufactured, or sold to be inhaled or otherwise consumed, including the substances commonly known as "delta‑8," "delta‑9," and "CBD."

(2)        Tobacco products. – As defined in G.S. 14‑313, including vapor products."

SECTION 2.  G.S. 115C‑562.5(a) is amended by adding a new subdivision to read:

"(7a)    For any school facility in which students attend in‑person classes, the school shall adopt a policy that is consistent with the requirements of Article 29A of this Chapter to prohibit the use of tobacco or hemp products on school grounds."

SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies beginning with the 2025‑2026 school year.