Gov. Mike DeWine’s ban on the sale of intoxicating hemp items ended before it could even take effect.

DeWine, a Republican who has long opposed the sale of the products, announced Oct. 8 that he was declaring an “adulterated consumer product emergency,” effective Tuesday because the items present “a threat to public health and safety.”

The products contain THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and aren’t regulated like the state’s adult recreational and medical marijuana industry.

DeWine has long argued that several of the products are geared toward children as they are in packets of gummies that look like candy that kids eat, such as Gushers, Nerds and Sour Patch Kids, and can easily be confused for actual candy. That, DeWine said, poses a health risk to children.

The governor has urged his fellow Republicans in the state Legislature to take action. But nothing has been done, which resulted in his decision to issue the executive order that would have lasted 90 days.

DeWine’s ban also would have included beverages, such as beers and wines, that include THC.

DeWine said Oct. 8: “Intoxicating hemp products are known to have significant impacts on young, developing brains, yet these products are legally marketed to kids, sold to kids and ingested by kids in Ohio. When voters chose to legalize marijuana (in 2023), they voted for a highly regulated market that only allows sales at licensed dispensaries to those 21 and older. Intoxicating hemp completely bypasses these laws and we must do more to keep these products away from kids.”

The governor had broader power to declare public health emergencies indefinitely until Republican legislators removed that authority in 2021 after DeWine’s COVID-19 health orders. That law also permits lawmakers to eliminate health orders after 30 days.

Three Ohio hemp businesses sued DeWine and won a temporary restraining order against the ban Tuesday, the day the ban was supposed to take effect.

Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge Carl Aveni granted a 14-day restraining order, ruling that hemp companies would “face immediate and irreparable harm through substantial disruptions to their business operations” if the ban took effect.

Michael Tindall, executive director of Ohio Healthy Alternatives Association, of which the three hemp litigants are members, said DeWine’s executive order “is an attack on Ohio’s consumers who will lose access to safe and legal products, and a gut punch to Ohio farmers and small businesses who have invested tens of millions building legitimate businesses in good faith under existing laws. This unilateral decision will destroy a nearly billion-dollar industry in Ohio created through small businesses and eliminating thousands of jobs — all without any notice.”

After Aveni’s decision, the association said the decision “allows thousands of hardworking Ohio entrepreneurs to continue supporting their families and serving consumers who rely on access to safe, legal and properly regulated hemp products.”

State Rep. Tex Fischer, R-Boardman, opposes DeWine’s executive order.

Fischer introduced a resolution Thursday rescinding the rules created by the executive order on intoxicating hemp products.

The resolution would grant the General Assembly the “authority during a state of emergency to rescind, in whole or in part, an order issued by a statewide elected officer in response to a state of emergency.” The resolution specifically targets DeWine’s order to allow the Ohio Department of Agriculture to amend the rules regarding the ban on intoxicating hemp.

Fischer said: “I think we are nearing a legislative solution that will render (the resolution) unnecessary. Based on my read of the court order, I also would expect a good result for those folks when they get a full ruling on the health order after these 14 days have expired.”

David Skolnick covers politics for the Tribune Chronicle and The Vindicator.