Five years after Texas legalized medical marijuana for people with debilitating illnesses, advocates and industry experts say the state’s strict rules, red tape, and burdensome barriers to entry have left the program largely inaccessible to those it was intended to help. But with a new legislative session gaveling in next month, some Texas lawmakers see […]
Texas
High aspirations: Marijuana bills look to push Texas toward decriminalization, legalization in 2021
With the start of the 87th Texas Legislative session less than a month away, 20 marijuana bills have been filed as several lawmakers look to take the next step toward legalization in the Lone Star State. Colorado legalized marijuana just eight years ago. Eight years later, 15 states along with Washington D.C. have now joined, […]
Tomlinson: The time has come for Texas to legalize marijuana — and decriminalize much more
American companies sell thousands of products that harm consumers, create addictions and generate health care costs for society-at-large, all in the name of personal liberty. Legalizing marijuana, therefore, is completely consistent. Texas should follow the lead of 15 other states that have realized cost-savings and community benefits from legalization that far outweigh the downsides. The […]
Several states legalized marijuana last week. Will Texas be next?
Advocates for marijuana legalization are hopeful Texas lawmakers will take up meaningful reform this upcoming 2021 legislative session. During last week’s general election, voters in Arizona, Montana, New Jersey and South Dakota approved ballot measures allowing recreational marijuana, leaving Texas a member of a shrinking group of states that prohibit the drug. That could soon […]
As Texas Hemp Farmers Prepare For Their First-Ever Harvest, Cannabis Regulation Remains Complicated
Texas is preparing for the first-ever legal cannabis harvests since the plant was banned statewide in 1931. In Bergheim, Texas, just north of San Antonio, there’s a skunky smell in the air. “You know, that’s a really good description. Skunky is a very typical terpene that is in most of these plants,” Austin Ruple said. […]
Texas to end retail outlet sales of legal smokable cannabis
The smoking of legal cannabis in Texas may go on. But as of this Sunday, stores that sell hemp flowers can only sell consumable versions of the plant. By state regulations, consuming does not include smoking. “I think we’re going to lose some sales,” Alex Reyes said. Reyes is a manager for Mary Jane’s CBD […]
Austin police won’t cite, arrest for misdemeanor pot charges, chief says
Austin police will no longer cite or arrest people for Class A or Class B misdemeanor marijuana possession, Chief Brian Manley said in a memo Thursday. Officers will now only cite or arrest people for misdemeanor marijuana possession if a person’s safety is at risk, if it is part of a felony narcotics case or in […]
Texas state crime labs won’t test suspected marijuana in low-level cases
The Texas Department of Public Safety is almost ready to roll out its long-awaited lab test to tell if cannabis is newly legal hemp or illegal marijuana. But DPS Director Steve McCraw notified Texas law enforcement agencies this month of a crucial caveat: The state labs won’t do testing in misdemeanor marijuana possession cases. That will likely […]
Austin, Texas police will stop arrests, tickets in most low-level marijuana cases after unanimous City Council vote
The Austin City Council approved a resolution Thursday that will largely end arrests and fines for low-level marijuana possession. This comes after Texas’ legalization of hemp last June threw marijuana prosecution into chaos since the plants look and smell identical. The resolution directs Austin police not to spend city resources on newly necessary lab tests to distinguish marijuana from […]
He spent a month in Texas jail accused of hauling 3,350 pounds of marijuana. But lab results say it was legal hemp.
In the ongoing chaos of hemp’s legalization that has sent marijuana prosecutions plummeting, Texas has encountered a 3,350-pound problem. Last month, a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper arrested a driver who the agency claimed was hauling more than a ton of marijuana through the state near Amarillo. Aneudy Gonzalez was jailed for nearly a month on federal charges […]
