Texas state Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, filed legislation on Feb. 20 that would deliver a knock-out blow to the state’s multibillion-dollar hemp industry if enacted.
The legislation, Senate Bill 3, aims to ban all consumable hemp products containing any form of THC while leaving in place the state’s low-THC medical cannabis program that incorporates a 1% THC cap under the state’s Compassionate Use Program.
Under the bill, license holders would not be allowed to manufacture consumable hemp products containing any amount of a cannabinoid other than nonintoxicating CBD or CBG, according to the bill. This means products containing delta-8 or delta-9 THC derived from hemp would be outlawed in Texas.
Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who listed S.B. 3 last month as one of his top priorities, first announced the legislation in December, when he accused retailers of exploiting the state’s industrial hemp program law from 2019 to sell “life-threatening, unregulated forms of THC to the public.”
“These stores not only sold to adults, but they targeted Texas children and exposed them to dangerous levels of THC,” he said.
RELATED: Texas Lieutenant Governor Lists THC Ban as Top Priority for 2025
The Texas Legislature passed the 2019 law, House Bill 1325, to authorize the commercial production, manufacturing, retail sale and inspection of industrial hemp crops and products following the federal legalization of hemp in the 2018 Farm Bill. Perry was the primary sponsor for the Senate’s version of that 2019 legislation.
Under the Texas Agriculture Code, hemp is defined as a cannabis plant or its derivatives consisting of less than 0.3% THC by weight, meaning a single gummy that weighs 10 grams can be infused with an intoxicating amount of THC (up to 30 milligrams) and remain compliant under than 0.3% threshold.
After Perry officially filed S.B. 3 last week, the Texas Cannabis Policy Center (TCPC) issued a news release suggesting that while the legislation includes some reasonable changes to state law related to youth access and consumer safety, it ultimately takes Texas back to its prohibition era.
“We share the senator’s concern about youth access and potentially dangerous products sailing under the radar of regulators, but we oppose banning THC for responsible adult use,” the release states. “Such a ban would hand this multibillion-dollar industry over to the illicit market, abandoning all opportunity to enforce regulations.”
The Texas hemp industry was valued at $8 billion in 2022, supporting roughly 50,000 jobs, with projections suggesting that the state’s industry could exceed a $10-billion market value in 2025, according to the TCPC.
The legislation would require a person to be 21 years or older to purchase a consumable hemp product and for products to be sold in child-resistant packaging. Also, marketing, advertising and packaging could not appeal to children, and retailers could not operate within 1,000 feet of a school.
S.B. 3 would require manufacturers to test hemp plant samples for the concentration and identity of the cannabinoids in the plant, as well as for the presence or quantity of heavy metals, pesticides, microbial contamination and any other substance prescribed by the Texas Department of State Health Services, according to the legislation. Labels would be required to include the amount of CBD or CBG and a certification that any other cannabinoid present in a product is not more than 0.0001% on a dry-weight basis.
The legislation also establishes criminal penalties, including:
a third-degree felony to manufacture or sell hemp products with cannabinoids other than CBD or CBG;aClass A misdemeanor to possess hemp products with cannabinoids other than CBD or CBG; anda Class A misdemeanor to ship or mail a consumable hemp product with any amount of any cannabinoid.
In addition, marketing or selling consumable hemp products to minors or near schools would be a misdemeanor, as would distributing or selling smokable products like THCA flower.
While Texas industry stakeholders—like TCPC and the Texas Hemp Business Council—support age-gating consumable hemp products to those 21 and older, requiring child-resistant packaging, and including the 1,000-foot setback from schools, they oppose the prohibition principles that make up the foundation of the legislation.
The effective date of the bill, if enacted, is Sept. 1, 2025.
Sen. Charles Perry, a Lubbock Republican, is sponsoring legislation that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is pushing as a top legislative priority this session. Read More
