Vote Hemp

What Vote Hemp does

Vote Hemp is a 501(c)(4) grassroots nonprofit advocacy organization founded in 2000 and headquartered in Washington, DC (712 H Street NE). The organization is dedicated to bringing back hemp farming in the United States through direct lobbying, legislator education, and coalition organizing. Its core activities include advocating for effective hemp laws and policies at federal and state levels, defending against policies that restrict hemp commerce, and mobilizing grassroots campaigns such as petitions to raise the federal THC threshold from 0.3% to 1% and to compel FDA regulation of CBD extracts. Vote Hemp does not operate a commercial product or SaaS platform; its core offerings are advocacy services, legislative tracking, and public education, with no proprietary technology stack beyond a content website and email/newsletter distribution.

Vote Hemp serves three primary stakeholder groups: American farmers seeking to legally grow hemp as a commercial crop, hemp industry businesses (processors, manufacturers, retailers), and federal and state legislators and policymakers who vote on hemp-related legislation. The organization works in coalition with the Farm Bureau, National Farmers Union, Drug Policy Alliance, and Hemp Industries Association (~1,050 member businesses). Notable milestones include helping draft the 2005 Industrial Hemp Farming Act, securing Sec. 7606 hemp pilot programs in the 2014 Farm Bill, and achieving the removal of hemp from the Controlled Substances Act via the 2018 Farm Bill. Following legalization, the organization has pivoted to implementation advocacy.

The organization operates with 1–10 employees and funds its operations entirely through grassroots donations with preset tiers of $10, $25, $50, $100, and $1,000, plus custom amounts, billed on a monthly cadence. Its go-to-market is community-led, combining digital advocacy (website, email/action alerts, YouTube, online petitions) with in-person lobbying (Hemp Lobby Day events). Vote Hemp is the longest-running grassroots 501(c)(4) nonprofit in the hemp industry and has received critical long-term financial and staff support from Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps. Eric Steenstra serves as President. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed.

Name

Vote Hemp

Legal name

Vote Hemp, Inc.

Website

https://votehemp.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Vote Hemp is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit advocacy organization founded in 2000 and headquartered in Washington, DC. It lobbies federal and state legislators and runs grassroots campaigns to legalize U.S. hemp farming, serving farmers, hemp businesses, and policymakers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hemp Policy Advocacy

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (81331), Other Social Advocacy Organizations (813319)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental Policy, Advocacy & Litigation (BPAGAGAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Human Rights & Anti-Discrimination Organizations (BPAGAFAB), Industrial Hemp Farming (Fiber-Grade) (AFAGAFAC)

Keywords

• Hemp policy advocacy
• Nonprofit lobbying
• Legislative tracking
• Grassroots organizing
• Cannabis reform

Headquarters

HQ city

Brattleboro

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: Vote Hemp operates as a 501(c)(4) grassroots nonprofit organization that generates revenue through donations from individuals, businesses, and supporters of hemp legalization. They accept various donation amounts ($10, $25, $50, $100, $1000 or other) and send fundraising emails, newsletters, and action alerts to supporters.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Vote Hemp is a 501(c)(4) grassroots nonprofit advocacy organization that educates legislators, lobbies for hemp farming legalization, tracks state and federal hemp legislation, and mobilizes grassroots support through petitions, action alerts, and Hemp Lobby Day events. The organization advocates on behalf of American farmers and the hemp industry for effective hemp laws and regulations, defense against policies that restrict hemp commerce, and removal of legal barriers to commercial hemp cultivation.

Product overview

Vote Hemp is a grassroots nonprofit advocacy organization (501(c)(4)) focused on hemp policy reform and legalization efforts in the United States. Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., the organization does not offer a technology product or software platform. Its activities include lobbying legislators, tracking state and federal hemp legislation, publishing research reports, maintaining a media center, organizing grassroots campaigns and petitions, and providing educational resources about hemp farming and policy. The organization's core offerings are advocacy services, legislative tracking tools, and public education—serving farmers, policymakers, and the hemp industry rather than providing a commercial product or SaaS platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Hemp Policy Advocacy and Lobbying
• State and Federal Hemp Legislation Tracking

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered major and moderate.

• Farm BureaumajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVote Hemp worked with the Farm Bureau along with the Drug Policy Alliance to remove drug felony prohibition in the 2018 Farm Bill. Farm Bureau has a policy supporting higher THC levels (1%) for hemp.
• Drug Policy AlliancemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in advocating for removal of drug felony prohibition in the 2018 Farm Bill. Worked together with Vote Hemp and Farm Bureau on this policy issue.
• National Farmers UnionmoderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational Farmers Union has policy on the books supporting higher THC levels (3%) for hemp, which Vote Hemp cites in support of their 1% THC petition campaign.
• Hemp Industries AssociationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoth organizations work together on hemp industry advocacy. Hemp Industries Association represents approximately 1,050 member hemp businesses and successfully challenged DEA rulemaking in 2003.
• RE Botanicals, Inc.moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerRE Botanicals, a South Carolina-based hemp company, joined the Hemp Industries Association in filing a federal lawsuit against the DEA challenging their interim final rule on hemp extracts.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Drug Policy Alliance: Major drug policy reform nonprofit and direct coalition partner of Vote Hemp. They worked together on removing the drug felony prohibition in the 2018 Farm Bill and share a comparable 501(c)-style advocacy model focused on legislative reform.
• Hemp Industries Association: National trade association for ~1,050 hemp businesses and the most directly comparable organization to Vote Hemp. Both advocate for hemp industry interests, have jointly litigated against DEA rulemaking, and operate as hemp-specific advocacy entities with overlapping membership and goals.

Broad incumbents

• National Farmers Union: Coalition partner of Vote Hemp that represents U.S. farmers and has hemp policy positions aligned with Vote Hemp (e.g., 3% THC threshold). Comparable as an agricultural advocacy organization with lobbying infrastructure that intersects hemp farming policy.
• Sierra Club: One of the largest environmental advocacy organizations in the U.S., operating a similar nonprofit advocacy, lobbying, and grassroots mobilization model. Comparable as a 501(c)(4)-adjacent environmental advocacy entity with significant policy influence.
• Farm Bureau (American Farm Bureau Federation): Largest U.S. agricultural advocacy organization and a coalition partner of Vote Hemp. Comparable as a federal-and-state lobbying entity representing farming interests, including hemp-specific policy positions (1% THC threshold support).
• Earthjustice: Major environmental advocacy nonprofit that uses litigation, lobbying, and grassroots mobilization — a comparable operating model to Vote Hemp, although focused on broader environmental issues rather than hemp-specific agricultural policy.
• NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws): Long-established drug policy reform advocacy organization that, like Vote Hemp, uses federal lobbying, grassroots campaigns, and litigation. Sits in the broader cannabis/hemp policy reform space and competes for similar donor dollars in drug policy advocacy.
• Marijuana Policy Project: Larger, well-funded cannabis policy reform organization with a similar 501(c) advocacy and lobbying playbook. Operates in adjacent policy territory (cannabis legalization) that overlaps with hemp advocacy and draws from overlapping donor and supporter bases.
• ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union): Large civil liberties and rights advocacy organization. Comparable as a nonprofit advocacy model that combines litigation, federal lobbying, and grassroots mobilization — relevant because Vote Hemp's drug felony prohibition work overlaps with ACLU's criminal justice reform portfolio.

Emerging players

• U.S. Hemp Roundtable: Hemp industry advocacy coalition that emerged post-2018 Farm Bill to lobby on CBD regulation and other hemp-specific federal issues. A more recent and narrower peer with overlapping mission but distinct industry-representative positioning versus Vote Hemp's grassroots approach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/votehemp
• Facebookfacebook.com/votehemp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/3812720

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Vote Hemp