Kansas has become the latest state where lawmakers have opted to allow for the legal cultivation of industrial hemp.

The Kansas Legislature has put before the state’s governor a bill that would alter the state’s legal definition of “marijuana” under the controlled substances act to exclude “industrial hemp”. Senate Bill 263 was passed in concurrence 40-0 by the Senate after being voted through the House 123 to 1.

The Alternative Crop Research Act explicitly allows the Kansas Department of Agriculture to grow hemp and to promote its research and development. Individual farmers who receive a license from the Department would be allowed to grow hemp as part of the research program. The Department also has the option of coordinating with a state college or university.

If the state’s governor signs the legislative proposal into law Kansas would become one of over 30 states to pass a law allowing some form of hemp cultivation. The governor also has the option of allowing it to become law without actually signing it.