Recently, Texas took a bold step towards potentially banning hemp products that contain any trace of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the compound responsible for marijuana’s psychoactive effects.
This move comes just six years after the state legalized hemp, which makes this potential ban even more controversial. As the bill progresses through the legislative process, the impact on cannabis businesses, consumers, and the state’s growing hemp industry could be significant.
This article examines the history of cannabis legalization in Texas, the details of Senate Bill 3, and what the proposed ban implies for the future of hemp in the state.
Only six years after Texas legalized hemp products, the Texas hemp industry has created over 53,000 jobs and generated an estimated $10 billion in economic impact.
Now, state lawmakers aim to ban most of them, citing concerns over abuse and public safety. While Texas still prohibits recreational marijuana, it operates a medical marijuana program that has gradually expanded.
The state has long maintained strict marijuana laws, though. In 1931, lawmakers made possession of any amount a felony, punishable by up to life imprisonment. Penalties became less severe in the 1970s, but they remain strict today.
Under current Texas law, possessing less than two ounces of marijuana is a Class B misdemeanor, punishable by 30 to 180 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,000. Possessing between two and four ounces qualifies as a Class A misdemeanor, carrying a sentence of 90 days to one year in prison.
Law enforcement treats possession of more than four ounces as a felony. After the 2018 federal Farm Bill allowed states to ease hemp restrictions, Texas legalized hemp products—but now, lawmakers appear ready to reverse that decision.
Republican state Senator Charles Perry introduced Senate Bill 3 following a December call from Lt. Governor Dan Patrick concerning the banning of hemp-derived THC products. On March 19, the Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 3 with a 24–7 vote, which prohibits all forms of THC, the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis.
If approved, the legislation will ban all consumable hemp products, even those with low levels of THC, except cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabigerol (CBG) formulations that contain no detectable THC. By approving legislation to ban hemp products with any amount of THC, the Texas Senate directly conflicts with the federal government’s 2018 Farm Bill, which legalized hemp products containing up to 0.3% THC, and effectively restricts access to THC products exclusively to the state’s Low THC medical program.
According to a report from the Austin American-Statesman, Patrick warned store owners that they should consider shutting down their businesses voluntarily before the legislative session ends. He cautioned that investigations would continue and lawsuits were likely to follow. “This is a poison in our public, and we as a legislature, our No. 1 responsibility is life and death issues,” Patrick said of THC products.
Ironically, this same logic applies better to alcohol. This legal substance causes far more public harm than THC in marijuana, especially at the very low levels of THC currently allowed for medical cannabis in Texas. 178,000 deaths were attributed to excessive alcohol use in 2020-2021 due to liver disease, poisoning, impaired driving, and violence. In contrast, THC has never caused a fatal overdose and carries significantly lower health risks.
If lawmakers truly prioritize life-and-death issues, it stands to reason the focus should be on alcohol reform, or reform on other life-threatening drugs, not banning hemp. Targeting cannabis while ignoring alcohol’s far greater public health risks reveals an apparent inconsistency—or even wrongful stigma. There is also no health benefit to consuming alcohol, unlike cannabis.
Evidence proves that alcohol causes more harm, addiction, and deaths than THC, so much so that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does not even have a category for deaths caused by the use of marijuana.
Patrick prioritized SB 3 this session, aiming to crack down on the state’s rapidly growing consumable hemp market. Patrick, who also presides over the Senate, reiterated his support for the ban and issued a warning to businesses currently selling hemp THC products during a press conference.
Senate Bill 3 imposes strict new regulations on the hemp industry. It requires businesses to register all consumable hemp products with the Texas Department of State Health Services and pay a $500 fee. The bill permits only products containing CBD or CBG and bans the inclusion of any mood-altering additives. Businesses that sell unregistered products would face misdemeanor charges.
The proposed ban would render thousands of hemp-derived products illegal in Texas, a move that could severely damage the state’s hemp industry and force countless small businesses to close. In addition, the ban on THC products is putting about 450 licensed hemp producers in the Texas Industrial Hemp Program at risk of losing a significant part of their livelihoods.
Farmers argue that it’s impossible to produce hemp without traces of THC, even for non-consumable products like clothing and paper. As a result, they warn that SB 3 could effectively destroy the Texas hemp industry almost completely.
Sen. Sarah Eckhardt opposed the ban, advocating for stricter regulation instead, also warning it would dismantle the consumable hemp market and harm the cannabis economy. Mark Bordas, executive director of the Texas Hemp Business Council, criticized lawmakers for confusing federally legal hemp with marijuana and also called for better regulation, not a ban, to address illegal manufacturing.
Bordas warned that eliminating the legal market would shut down over 7,000 licensed dispensaries and open the door for unregulated black-market sales to take over. He cautioned that this shift would create the very problem lawmakers hope to avoid, as it would result in the loss of control over product regulation.
Without legal THC products in Texas, it raises the risk of the black market selling laced cannabis with more dangerous substances. As a result, the life-and-death issues Patrick claims to prioritize could worsen, not improve, under a ban on legal THC hemp products.
However, advocates for Texas’s hemp industry continue objecting to the bill, using the impact this ban will have on Texas hemp businesses and consumers.
READ: Revamping Texas Medical Cannabis Program Is the Key to Ending the State’s Opioid Crisis
Before it can become a law, steps involving detailed procedures and opportunities for public input are required, ensuring thorough consideration of the bill.
A Texas senator files SB 3 to start the legislative process. The Lieutenant Governor assigns it to a Senate committee, such as the Health and Human Services committee, which holds hearings, reviews amendments, and, if approved, sends it to the full Senate.
Senators debate, amend, and vote to advance the bill to the House of Representatives. There, the Speaker refers it to a committee for similar review. If the committee approves, the bill moves to the full House for debate, possible amendments, and a final vote.
If the House amends the bill, lawmakers may form a conference committee to reconcile differences between the two chambers. Once both chambers approve the reconciled version, they send the bill to the Governor, who can sign it into law, veto it, or allow it to become law without taking action.
If SB 3 passes, it could bring significant changes for hemp businesses and consumers across Texas. Cannabis companies may need to revise their labeling, testing, or sales practices to comply with new regulations or risk legal consequences. At the same time, consumers—especially those who use hemp products for medical relief—could struggle to access the products they depend on if lawmakers tighten restrictions.
Unfortunately, SB 3 is one of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s priority bills, meaning it has strong support in the Senate and is likely to pass unless significant opposition develops.
On April 7, hundreds of Texas farmers, small business owners, and industry advocates testified at the Texas Capitol against Senate Bill 3 and House Bill 28 (HB 28). Their goal is clear: stop the legislation that threatens to destroy the state’s booming hemp industry.
Not only would SB 3 harm cannabis businesses, it would jeopardize tens of thousands of jobs, decrease tax revenue, and limit access to safe, legal hemp products for adults. The industry doesn’t need prohibition—it needs smarter regulation, according to these advocates.
According to an economic report, Texas’s hemp industry has seen explosive growth, such as:
Public sentiment also supports the hemp market. A recent Baselice & Associates Inc. survey found that:
Texas already has a cannabis regulatory framework through House Bill 1325 (passed in 2019), which mandates testing, licensing, labeling, and certificates of analysis. Rather than start over, advocates are building on these existing rules to improve safety. Their proposed enhancements include:
Overall, the data shows Texans want common-sense hemp regulation, not a ban that risks jobs, businesses, and consumer freedom.
The debate over Senate Bill 3 highlights the tension between political concerns for public safety and Texas’s growing hemp industry. Supporters advocate for stricter regulation instead of a full ban, as it could harm small businesses and severely limit or eliminate access to legal products.
As the bill progresses, public sentiment continues to largely favor regulation over prohibition, with the outcome poised to impact both the state’s economy and the cannabis industry.
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