The letter below is from Sen. Mitch McConnell to a Vote Hemp supporter in reply to a letter asking him to become a sponsor of the Industrial Hemp Farming Act.

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

If you receive a reply from one of your elected representatives please email a copy of it to us at hempinfo@votehemp.com. It will help with our lobbying efforts to know the contents of these letters. We will not publish your name or address and hold them in confidence.

February 6, 2013

Dear Constituent,

Thank you for contacting me regarding industrial hemp. Hearing from you helps me better represent Kentucky in the United States Senate.

In you correspondence you expressed your views on industrial hemp. As you know, industrial hemp can be used to produce products such as textiles, fuel, clothing, rope, and plastic, and research into the alternative uses for hemp is ongoing. However, some have expressed concerns that the licensing on industrial hemp could impact the marijuana interdiction operations which I have fought to support throughout my entire Senate career.

With this in mind, I met with my colleague Senator Rand Paul and Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer to discuss the potential benefits that industrialized hemp could have on Kentucky. After those discussions and further research, I am now confident that allowing hemp's production will be a positive development for Kentucky's farm families and economy. Moreover, Commissioner Comer has assured me that his office is committed to pursuing industrialized hemp production in a way that does not compromise Kentucky law enforcement's marijuana eradication efforts or in any way promote illegal drug use.

Thank you for contacting me about this important job creation matter. Please be assured that I will keep your thoughts in mind should legislation regarding industrialized hemp be considered by the full U.S. Senate in the 113th Congress. If you would like to receive periodic updates about issues such as this, please sign up for my eNewsletter at http://mcconnell.senate.gov and become a fan of my page on Facebook, by visiting http://www.facebook.com/mitchmcconnell.

Sincerely,

MITCH McCONNELL
UNITED STATES SENATOR

MM/cc