HOUSTON — A Texas bill could close a legal loophole and ban the sale of all THC products in the state.
Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said he was launching an effort to ban all consumable tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, from being sold in Texas. His office emailed a news release describing the bill Wednesday night.
Patrick claims that retailers are exploiting a legal loophole and selling dangerous products. In 2019, the commercialization of hemp was legalized in Texas. The 2019 Hemp Farming Act allowed for the growing of hemp that did not exceed 0.3% concentration of delta-9. Delta-9 is the main intoxicating ingredient of marijuana.
Patrick claims that stores are targeting children with "dangerous" delta-9 products.
Senator Charles Perry R-Lubbock will sponsor Senate Bill 3, banning all forms of THC. Patrick says the bill will have broad support in the Senate.
"I trust the House will also see the danger of these products and pass this bill with overwhelming support so it can become law immediately," Patrick said in a news release.
Marijuana is a Schedule I drug at the federal level, classified as a drug with "no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse."
The DEA was holding hearings on rescheduling the drug to align with the Department of Justice and Department of Health and Human Services' view of the drug and its uses in medicine.
Patrick's full statement read:
“Everyone knows that agriculture is part of the fabric of Texas. In 2019, the Texas Legislature passed House Bill 1325, by Rep. Tracy King, R-Uvalde, to bolster agriculture in Texas. Part of that bill allowed for the commercialization of hemp which might include un-removable non-intoxicating trace amounts of Delta 9 THC.
“Dangerously, retailers exploited the agriculture law to sell life-threatening, unregulated forms of THC to the public and made them easily accessible. These stores not only sold to adults, but they targeted Texas children and exposed them to dangerous levels of THC. Since 2023, thousands of stores selling hazardous THC products have popped up in communities across the state, and many sell products, including beverages, that have three to four times the THC content which might be found in marijuana purchased from a drug dealer. Under Senate Bill 3, these products, and all forms of THC, will be banned in Texas.
“Senate Bill 3, which will be carried by Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, will ban all forms of THC and keep these unsafe products off our streets. We are not going to allow these retailers to circumvent the law and put Texans’ lives in danger. This bill will have broad bipartisan support in the Senate, and I trust the House will also see the danger of these products and pass this bill with overwhelming support so it can become law immediately.”