“Under current Texas law, hemp is defined by its delta-9 THC concentration of not more than 0.3%,” said David Sergi, an attorney for the hemp coalition. “These Texas officials and state agencies are clearly attempting to create a new law in direct contradiction to what the Texas legislature intended.”
A Texas judge has temporarily lifted a statewide ban on the sale of smokeable hemp products, which include flower buds and rolled joints. The order is expected to remain in place until at least April 23.
According to The Texas Tribune, Travis County Judge Maya Guerra Gamble’s decision granted a request for a temporary restraining order submitted by the Texas Hemp Business Council, Hemp Industry & Farmers of America, and several local dispensaries and product manufacturers.
Attorneys for the plaintiff organizations said that Texas regulators overstepped their authority by rewriting the statutory definition of hemp established by lawmakers in 2019.
“Under current Texas law, hemp is defined by its delta-9 THC concentration of not more than 0.3%,” said David Sergi, an attorney for the hemp coalition. “These Texas officials and state agencies are clearly attempting to create a new law in direct contradiction to what the Texas legislature intended.”
The Associated Press notes that, even though Texas state law prohibits the sale, use, and possession of marijuana, legislators legalized hemp in 2019. To circumvent restrictions related to delta-9, manufacturers began cultivating hemp plants with another type of THC called THCA. If ignited in a joint, THCA can produce a similar “high” to THC.
Some lawmakers have claimed that this apparent loophole has, in effect, created a recreational and largely unrelated THC market to appear overnight.
In response to a call for greater regulation, the Texas Department of State Health Services recently released regulations on consumable, hemp-derived THC-containing products. These rules took effect at the end of March and require child-resistant packaging, increased licensing fees, and more intensive bookkeeping requirements. It also codifies 21 as a legal purchasing age.
The hemp lawsuit notes that, under these new rules, laboratories test compliance strictly in accordance with the total amount of THC found in a product. If THC levels exceed the 0.3% threshold, even if the THC is only activated after being smoked, the product will now be noncompliant under state law. Some popular products, like THCA flower and pre-rolled joints, became illegal with the regulations’ passage.
“An administrative agency may not substitute its own policy judgment for the outcome produced by the constitutional lawmaking process,” the lawsuit alleges. “The Texas Constitution vests legislative power in the Legislature, not administrative agencies.”
Sergi said that his clients want to do away with impediments to their ability to do business but emphasized that they fully support age-verification regulations and other rules intended to protect children and the general public.
“Texas hemp businesses wholeheartedly support those regulations, as they fall within the agency’s authority,” said Sergi. “We are seeking to halt rules that would effectively end the in-state production of hemp and the sale of hemp products—items the Legislature chose not to ban during recent legislative and special sessions.”
Sources
Judge rules to temporarily block Texas’ smokeable hemp ban
Texas cannabis businesses sue state to block smokeable hemp ban
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