Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0080-06-28-.06 - SAMPLING AND INSPECTIONS

(1) The department or a designated representative may enter during normal business hours any location, licensed by the department, for purposes of inspecting any cannabis plant, record, or other material as necessary for the efficient enforcement of the Act and this chapter.

(2) Sampling.

(a) The department or a designated representative, trained and approved by the department, may conduct sampling of any cannabis plant or other material at a location licensed by the department.

(b) A sample collected according to uniform protocols approved by the commissioner shall be deemed representative of the location, growing area, or lot from which the sample was obtained.

(c) Within 30 days prior to the anticipated harvest the department or a designated representative shall collect samples from the flower material for THC level testing.

(d) During a scheduled sample collection, the producer or an authorized representative shall be present at the growing site.

(e) A producer shall not harvest the hemp crop prior to samples being taken.

(f) Samples from different lots shall not be comingled.

(3) The protocols employed by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture define the preparation and analysis of hemp samples for the quantitative determination of cannabinoids, including delta-9-THC, on a dry weight basis and is conducted in a manner similarly reliable to postdecarboxylation.

(4) The department and growers may utilize private laboratories for testing official samples, if the laboratory meets the standards set by USDA for such work and the sample is sent directly to the laboratory by the sampler. The department's laboratory shall serve as the reference laboratory for all samples.

(5) Any sample test result higher than 0.3% THC concentration on a dry mass basis shall be conclusive evidence that one or more cannabis plants from the area sampled contains a THC concentration in excess of that allowed under the Act and shall be grounds for destruction or remediation.

(6) Licensees shall pay a Tier 4 laboratory analysis fee under T.C.A. § 43-1-703(f) for each sample tested by the department.

Notes

Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0080-06-28-.06

Original rules filed July 31, 2018; effective October 29, 2018. Emergency rules filed June 3, 2019; effective through November 30, 2019. Emergency rules expired effective December 1, 2019, and the rules reverted to their previous statuses. Repeal and new rule filed June 25, 2021; effective 9/23/2021.

Authority: T.C.A. §§ 4-3-203, 43-26-103, and 43-27-104.