Delaware General Assembly

Senate Health & Social Services 3/18/26

Awaiting consideration in Committee

3/18/26

Hoffner

Sen. Buckson
Rep. K. Williams

Sen. Richardson
Rep. Gray

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE UNIFORM CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT.

Kratom is an herb derived from a leafy Southeast Asia tree, known formally as Mitragyna speciosa. Kratom contains two psychoactive compounds, mitragynine and 7-hydroximitragynine. Both compounds can bind to opioid receptors in the brain and produce a pharmacological response similar to the effects of other opioids, such as morphine, and can lead to addiction. An estimated 11 to 15 million Americans consume Kratom regularly. According to a 2025 study by the Legislative Analysis and Public Policy Association, 24 states and the District of Columbia regulate kratom or its components in some manner. In six states (Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin) and the District of Columbia, kratom’s psychoactive components are considered controlled substances. In 18 states, the possession, sale, manufacture, etc. of kratom products is regulated. A Center for Disease Control analysis found that kratom was implicated in 846 fatal overdose cases across 30 states and the District of Columbia in 2022. Other reports suggest over 2,000 fatal overdoses have been linked to kratom since 2021. This Act amends Delaware’s Uniform Controlled Substances Act. The Act defines “Kratom” and “Kratom Products”. The Act makes it unlawful to manufacture, distribute, sell, offer to sell, or possess with intent to sell a Kratom Product. The Act creates a new § 4761C, which makes manufacturing, processing, packaging, labeling, selling, delivering, distributing, offering, or sale, or possession with intent to sell, deliver, or distribute Kratom Products unlawful and is subject to the penalties imposed by Title 16, Chapter 47, for Schedule I controlled substances, and is a Class C felony. This Act makes the knowing and intentional possession of a personal use quantity of a Kratom Product a Class B misdemeanor, which exposes the person to fines, but not incarceration.

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