Texas lawmakers debate whether to limit or ban all THC products
Texas lawmakers debate whether to limit or ban THC
Texas lawmakers are debating whether to limit the sale of THC products in the state or put an outright ban on them.
DALLAS - Texas lawmakers are debating whether to limit the sale of THC products in the state or put an outright ban on them.
This comes with the increasing popularity of products like Delta 8 and Delta 9, which some lawmakers argue contain excessive levels of THC, the ingredient in cannabis that gets people high.
Texas THC Ban
What's new:
As the legislative session nears its end, Texas lawmakers are pushing forward with Senate Bill 3.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has been a vocal supporter of SB3, which calls for a total ban on THC products throughout the state.
The bill passed the Senate. Now the ball is in the House’s court.
What they're saying:
Thousands of CBD and vape shops have opened in Texas over the past few years, seizing on the growing popularity of THC products.
But Lt. Gov. Patrick believes stores are abusing legal allowances by selling products with more intoxicating levels of THC than is legally allowed. That’s why he wants a total ban.
"This is poisonous THC. No regulations whatsoever. No one knows what’s in it," he argued during Tuesday’s hearing on the bill.
Texas Senate passes bill to ban THC products
On Wednesday, the Texas Senate passed a bill that would ban THC products from being sold in the state. The bill now moves to the Texas House.
The other side:
Vince Sanders, the founder of the retail chain CBD American Shaman, believes lawmakers should focus on putting more regulations on products.
He said about half of his business comes from people buying Delta 8 and Delta 9 products.
"In Texas, it’s probably close to half. Yeah, it’s about half non-psychoactive, about half psychoactive. And part of that is because Texas is the rare large state that has no marijuana," he said.
Sanders said his stories require a photo ID for age verification and customers must sign a waiver indicating they know what they are purchasing.
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He said stores that are doing the right thing will be punished under SB 3, but it won’t make the lieutenant governor’s concerns go away.
"If there is a ban, it will be a giant boom for the cartels. They’ll love it. And the hardworking, honest Texans that are tens of thousands of people making a living this way, will have to find a new way to make a living and support their families," he said.
Sanders is not sure whether he’ll be forced to close some of his stores if SB 3 becomes a law. Many were open before THC products became available, and Sanders believes some people will switch back to purchasing a non-psychoactive cannabinoid.
"Some percentage would, of course. But I think a lot of them will simply pivot to the black market," he said.
What's next:
The current House version of SB 3 adds regulations instead of an outright THC ban.
However, an amendment has been proposed to make the House version mirror the Senate’s total ban.
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The differences in the bills could lead to a clash between leaders in the House and Senate.
Patrick posted a video on Monday night arguing there is no way to regulate every store selling these products.
"We can’t regulate it. We don’t have enough police to check every store when it’s 8,000-9,000 of them. To put this in perspective, we only have 1,100 McDonald’s in the state of Texas and 1,300 Starbucks in the state of Texas. So, there’re eight times more smoke shops selling this poison," he said.
The House is expected to vote on its amendment on Tuesday night.
Lawmakers have fewer than 13 days to pass the bill before the session ends.
The topic could come up again in a special session, though.
The Source: FOX 4's Steve Dial gathered details for this story by interviewing CBD American Shaman founder Vince Sanders, as well as from Tuesday's Texas Legislature livestreams and statements made by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.