Why Does Kratom Legislation Always Hit in April and May?

If you’ve been around the Kratom advocacy space for any length of time, you’ve probably noticed a pattern: the legislative heat gets turned up every spring—particularly in April and May. It’s not a coincidence, and it’s not just bad luck. It’s strategy.

Here’s why:

1. Legislative Calendars Favor the Spring Push.
In most states, the legislative session ramps up after the first quarter, with bills moving out of committee and onto the floor for votes. Lawmakers know they’re working against a summer recess, so April and May become a pressure-cooker period for pushing through bills—good or bad. This makes it the prime window for industries and lobbyists to jam their priorities into law before attention wanes.

2. Lobbyists Count on Consumer Distraction.
Spring brings holidays, graduations, school testing, tax season headaches, and the start of vacation planning. They know most of us are overwhelmed, tired, or checked out. They exploit that. Bills move faster when the public isn’t watching.

3. It’s Easier to Pass Bans Before Summer Campaigning Starts.
Summer and early fall are often reserved for campaigning, especially in election years. If a lawmaker is going to take a controversial stance (like banning Kratom), they’d rather do it early—then use the next few months to change the subject or spin their vote.

4. Coordinated Efforts Behind the Scenes.
Many of these Kratom-related bills don’t appear organically. They’re pushed by powerful anti-plant coalitions, often with cookie-cutter language passed from one statehouse to the next. When one state proposes a bill, others tend to follow quickly, creating a cascading effect across April and May.

So What Can We Do About It?
This is the time of year when advocacy matters most. Stay alert. Stay informed. Help others understand what’s happening. Make calls, write emails, and show lawmakers that we are paying attention—even when the timing seems designed to slip past us.