KENTUCKY MAKES LAST-MINUTE SWITCH, ADDS KRATOM BAN TO REVENUE BILL

As the back-and-forth over kratom policy has evolved in recent years, opponents of the plant have had to switch tactics to avoid pushback from consumers and constituents. 

For lawmakers in Kentucky, those tactics hit a new low in passing a ban on kratom.

A recent funding bill in the state legislature gave legislators in Kentucky a chance to sneak in a statute targeting kratom. The language opposing the plant was added in the final days of the legislative session, turning reasonable state regulations into an outright ban. Although the new law will only make it illegal to sell kratom products in the state, advocates for the natural supplement are pushing back on the underhanded tactics used to pass the ban.

An omnibus bill introduced in the Kentucky legislature was amended to include a section repealing the Kratom Consumer Protection Act (KCPA), which passed in 2024. That leaves kratom consumers caught up in a legal back-and-forth that will limit their ability to participate in a regulated, responsible marketplace for kratom products. 

Replacing Reasonable Regulations

That original law was a robust set of regulations for the kratom market in Kentucky. It set an age requirement for purchase (21), banned adulterants and synthetic alkaloids, and set a limit on the amount of 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) that can be present in a product labeled as kratom. There was also a clause that set labeling requirements to ensure that kratom consumers knew what they were getting from each product. 

Gov. Andy Beshear added another layer of consumer protections in 2025, when he moved to make 7-OH a Schedule I substance in the state. Although 7-OH occurs in trace elements in natural leaf kratom, Beshear's actions mimic those of other states and the Food and Drug Administration, which have targeted synthesized and enhanced 7-OH products. 

At the time, state authorities backed Beshear’s decision. ‘

“When kratom is altered to create synthetic opioids, it becomes a threat to the public’s health,” said Dr. Steven Stack, who serves as the Secretary for the Cabinet for Health and Family Services. “It puts people at risk and undermines the strides Kentucky has made in reducing the scourge of addiction.”

Legislators tossed all of those regulations out with the addition of language to a 386-page bill aimed at addressing revenue concerns. 

More specifically, a clause of the new omnibus bill changed the language of the KCPA to switch it from reasonable regulations to an outright ban on selling, manufacturing or otherwise distributing kratom products in any form. The rewording of the existing laws also formally struck the language offering basic protections for customers and requirements for kratom products available in Kentucky. 

The omnibus also increased penalties for individuals who violate the state's kratom laws. As originally written, first-time offenders faced fines of up to $500, and repeat offenders were subject to fines of up to $1000. Under the new guidance, the penalty for first-time offenders increased to $ 5,000, and repeat offenders could be fined up to $10,000. 

Rather than break apart the bill as a separate measure addressing kratom, the proposed change to state law was grouped with items ranging from tax adjustments to statues of lawmakers to avoid taking the kratom question head-on. The changes relating to kratom were also introduced in the final days of the legislative session, leaving little time for advocates to push back against the drastic shift in policy.

Last-Minute Legislation

In its original form, the bill passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 69-18 on Mar. 11, without the language on kratom regulations. It was received by the state Senate the next day, assigned to the Appropriations and Revenue Committee, and received its first two readings over the next two weeks. A proposed amendment was filed on the bill during that period, but it still did not address kratom. 

The bill sat dormant until Apr. 1, the final day for bills to be concurred during the 2026 legislative session. With time running out, the bill was reported favorably out of committee, with a substitute that included the kratom ban. 

That substitute was robust enough that committee members acknowledged they had not read the entire bill. During the meeting to introduce the committee substitute, there was no discussion or testimony on the new kratom-related section. Not only was the bill advanced out of the committee, but it also cleared the Senate floor by a 37-0 vote. 

At first, House legislators refused to concur with the Senate Committee Substitute, which sent the bill back to the upper chamber. Due to disagreement over the bill's text, a conference committee was appointed and issued a report that kept the kratom ban in the bill. The changes in kratom policy remained after the conference committee. 

This time, the vote on the Senate floor was 34-0, sending the measure back to the House of Representatives for final approval. The House adopted the conference committee report and passed the measure by a vote of 65-25. 

Despite pushback from advocates, the supermajority of Republican lawmakers ensured that the ban was codified into law. 

Beshear did issue a line-item veto of sections of the bill that did not pertain to kratom; however, both chambers of the legislature pushed back and overrode Beshear's attempt to change the bill. In the end, 31 of the 32 vetoes issued by Beshear were overrode by the legislature.

Due to the size of the bill, different sections of the measure have different effective dates. The ban on kratom sales and distribution is slated to take effect on Jan. 1, 2027.  

For the latest on kratom legality in Kentucky and other states, visit our kratom legality map.