---
title: "Ask a hemp-law question (Verified Answer Engine)"
method: GET
path: "/v1/answer"
tags: ["Answer"]
---

# Ask a hemp-law question (Verified Answer Engine)

`GET /v1/answer`

## Request

- Base URL: `https://api.hempdata.io`
- URL: `https://api.hempdata.io/v1/answer`
- Auth: HTTP bearer

Deterministic, citation-backed answer from verified regulatory data — the same engine behind hempdata.io/ask. No language model in this path: it cannot invent a regulatory number. Returns status=answered with verification + citations, or an honest status=gap (still HTTP 200) when verified data can't answer.

## Query parameters

- `q` string, required
- `state` string

## Response `200`

Answer or honest gap

- ApiResponseAnswer
  - `success` boolean, required
  - `data` AnswerResult, required: Deterministic Verified Answer Engine result. status=answered carries a citation-backed answer; status=gap is an honest refusal (still HTTP 200) when verified data can't answer.
    - `status` 'answered' | 'gap', required
    - `intent` string, required
    - `parsed` object: What the deterministic parser extracted (states, substance, numbers, trace)
    - `answer` object
      - `text` string, required: Answer text with inline [n] citation markers
      - `citations` AnswerCitation[], required
        - `n` integer, required: 1-based index matching the inline [n] marker in the answer text
        - `label` string, required
        - `url` string, required
      - `verification` AnswerVerification, required: Verification backing the answer. status=verified means the figure traces to a tracked, human-reviewed fact with primary sources.
        - `status` 'verified' | 'unverified', required
        - `confidence` number, required
        - `factId` string
        - `statute` string
        - `lastVerified` string
        - `primarySources` string[]
        - `disclaimer` string: Present only when status=unverified
      - `data` unknown
    - `gap` object
      - `reason` string
      - `missing` string: Human-facing description of what's missing / how to rephrase
      - `states` string[]
      - `substance` string, nullable
      - `product_type` string, nullable
  - `meta` object, nullable
  - `errors` unknown

## Other responses

- `400`: Validation error (q missing/too long, or state not a two-letter US jurisdiction code)
- `401`: Missing or invalid API key
- `503`: Answer engine unavailable

---

[API](https://skmtc.dev/hempdata/apis/hempdata-api.md) · [All operations](https://skmtc.dev/hempdata/apis/hempdata-api/llms.txt) · [OpenAPI document](https://skmtc.dev/hempdata/apis/hempdata-api/revisions/2c2946badd40?raw)