Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is launching a bizarre effort to ban legal THC: According to a release, Patrick will ban all forms of ingestible tetrahydrocannabinol ( He is reportedly pushing for a bill that would ban the sale of THC.
He is pushing Senate Bill 3, which is expected to be passed by Sen. Charles Perry (R-Lubbock), which would ban all forms of THC.
Patrick is unhappy with House Bill 1325, introduced by Rep. Tracy King (D-Uvalde) to strengthen Texas agriculture. It was passed by the Texas Legislature in 2019.
Part of that bill allowed the commercialization of hemp containing trace amounts of non-removable, non-intoxicating delta-9 THC.
“Dangerously, retailers have exploited the Farm Bill to sell life-threatening, unregulated forms of THC to the general public and make them readily available,” Patrick said in a release. states. Reach dangerous levels of THC. ”
“Since 2023, thousands of stores have sprung up selling harmful THC products to communities across the state, many with a THC content of 3-4% that can be found in marijuana purchased from drug dealers. “We’re selling products that include beverages that have double the THC content,” he says.
It’s as if the genie has come out of the bottle. Hemp in Texas is booming, according to the Baker Institute. From 2020 to 2023, sales of hemp-derived cannabinoids increased by 1283 percent, reaching a value of $2.78 billion last year.
And they say efforts to roll it back are essentially futile.
“While prohibition may seem like the simplest response, it will almost certainly fail both in eliminating widespread access to cannabis-derived cannabinoids and in protecting the public,” they say. .
“As of April 2024, there are more than 7,000 registered drug dispensaries in Texas,” they note. “It is estimated that more than 50,000 Texans are employed in the hemp sector. While a state ban would devastate this industry, it would not reduce consumer demand for hemp-derived cannabinoids. Instead, consumers will turn to the illicit hemp market that will inevitably form.”Following the state’s ban, products still sold in state-registered stores are being sold through underground supply networks. It can be obtained through tax-free profits. ”
They state that “a broad ban, even if poorly enforced, would have a worse impact on consumers than the state’s current system.”
Meanwhile, voters support marijuana decriminalization efforts like those recently approved by Dallas, as well as the cities of Austin, Denton, Elgin, Killeen and San Marcos.
Katina Voelinger, executive director of Ground Game Texas, a Texas group that has advocated for marijuana decriminalization, said in a statement that the bill would turn the clock back to a more repressive era. He said it would be.
“Instead of banning THC, lawmakers should focus on legalizing marijuana statewide, which would allow cannabis to be safely regulated and is already legal in 24 states. This will prevent countless residents from being needlessly arrested and prosecuted for possession of illegal items,” Fehringer said. “We’ve seen time and time again that this is what Texans want, with marijuana decriminalization ballot initiatives in Dallas, Lockhart, etc. Bastrop won a landslide this November. did.”
Daryosh Austin Zamhariri, executive director of the Texas Cannabis Collective, a group working to reform cannabis laws, said Patrick’s support for a bill that would ban all consumable THC products in Texas is a sign of ” “It’s a sharp departure from the views of the overwhelming majority of Texans.”
“Poll after poll shows that Texans support legalizing marijuana and ending failed marijuana prohibition policies,” Zamhariri said. “This attitude is evident in several campaigns that have received bipartisan supermajority votes through local ballot initiatives to gradually decriminalize marijuana possession in cities across the state. We look forward to working with our coalition partners in the 89th Congress to bring common sense cannabis reform to all of Texas. ”
