Texas Lawmakers Pass Total Ban on THC

The Texas House of Representatives on Wednesday passed Senate Bill 3, a
proposal that seeks to ban products containing any amount of THC, even when
sourced from federally legal industrial hemp crops, CBS News reports. The
ban does not apply to the state’s limited medical cannabis program.

The House voted 95-44 in favor of SB3, which was authored by Sen. Charles
Perry and passed the Senate in March. If signed into law, the bill would
prohibit the sale of any products containing delta-8 or delta-9 THC — or
any other cannabinoids, except CBD or CBG — effectively shuttering the
state’s $8 billion retail hemp products industry.

“We are deeply disappointed by the Texas House’s passage of [SB3], a bill
that dismantles the legal hemp industry and ignores the voices of small
businesses, farmers, veterans and consumers across the state who rely on
hemp-derived products for their livelihoods and well-being.” — The Texas
Hemp Business Council, in a statement

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R), who announced last year that banning THC
outright would be one of his top priorities in 2025, thanked lawmakers for
passing the bill.

Meanwhile, House lawmakers prefaced the THC crackdown with a vote last week
to expand the state’s limited medical cannabis program by adding chronic
pain and Crohn’s disease to its list of qualifying conditions.