There's another legislative debate over forms of cannabis that aren't marijuana.

Indiana legalized CBD oil three years ago. Shelbyville Representative Sean Eberhart wants to apply the same standard to the hemp flower: it's legal as long as the THC content is minimal.

Eberhart says hemp is projected to be a quarter-billion-dollar industry within four years, and says Indiana farmers and retailers should be able to compete with neighboring states for a slice of that pie.

But State Police oppose the bill, saying it would make Indiana's marijuana laws unenforceable. Since hemp flower and marijuana look and smell the same, only the THC content would separate legal from illegal, making it the only drug subject to a quantitative lab analysis.

Current law addresses that issue by limiting hemp to licensed processors -- if you don't have a license, there's a presumption you've broken the law, regardless of the lab test.

A similar objection sank Eberhart's last attempt to legalize hemp in 2019. Eberhart says a new Purdue-developed field test can solve that problem. But prosecutors also oppose the bill, saying that test hasn't been ruled admissible in court yet.

The bill failed at a Monday committee hearing when no one seconded a motion to pass it, but the proposal could still come back for another try.