This week in cannabis news, the city of Killeen approved the marijuana decriminalization measure with some caveats, Texas senator Charles Perry has filed a hemp bill in the Senate, and Dan Herer speaks at the Taste of Texas Hemp Cup.
The Killeen City Council voted to approve the decriminalization measure this past Tuesday.
In a 4-3 vote, the Killeen City Council approved Proposition A with an amendment to the ordinance. Councilmember Jessica Gonzalez filed an amended version of the ordinance which removed Section 22-83 of the language passed by voters. The ordinance section would’ve stopped a search and seizure by local police based on marijuana odor as probable cause.
Councilmember Jose Segarra could get behind Gonzalez’s motion and was one of the four who voted to approve it.
Learn how to become a medical cannabis patient in Texas
“I wanted them to be able to use that as a probable cause because I kind of read the list of arrests that our police officers have made and over 1,800 of them had marijuana as a reason why they were arrested for something else,” he explained.
David Bass of Texas Veterans for Medical Marijuana noted on Facebook that “in Killeen, since November 8th, there have been 18 LEO searches based on the smell of marijuana. Of those, nine resulted in the discovery of hard drugs, weapons, or outstanding warrants.”
Bass further noted that the other 9 were less than 4 oz, and the police confiscated the marijuana and did not arrest the people. That was stated by the police chief that night at the council meeting.
“Those nine searches that resulted in felony arrests for other than marijuana are why our police do not want to give up their right to search,” stated Bass.
Articles on Texas decriminalization and penalty reduction
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This past week, Senator Charles Perry filed Senate Bill 264 regarding consumable hemp products in Texas. Perry has authored a piece of the bill that brought concern to the hemp community over its implications for the industry. The bill states,
Notwithstanding any other law, a person may not manufacture, sell, or purchase a consumable hemp product in this state:
(1) that has a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis;
(2) that contains synthetically derived tetrahydrocannabinols, as defined by department rule, including synthetically derived acids, isomers, or salts of tetrahydrocannabinol;
(3) that exceeds any federal limit for tetrahydrocannabinol; or
(4) if additional tetrahydrocannabinol in a concentration greater than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis has been applied to the product.
Learn how to become a medical cannabis patient in Texas
The bill, as written, would ban delta-8, and any synthetically derived items of the hemp plant, specifically as defined by DSHS. In addition, if the department defines synthetic as being beyond building a substance from scratch to include anything created by mechanical or chemical extraction, those compounds would also be banned.
The bill filed does not mean the delta-8 or any other isomer is currently illegal to sell in Texas. This is only a bill that has been filed in the state legislature. It does not mean the legislature will pass the bill with this exact language; it can get better or worsen over time. The bill will have to pass both chambers of the legislature and be signed by the governor to go into effect.
Read more about Delta-8 in Texas
The Taste of Texas Hemp Cup took place on Saturday afternoon, with vendors and people from across the state attending to celebrate another year in Texas.
One of the event’s biggest highlights was Dan Herrer speaking to the attendees in the early evening about the plant’s future with warnings. Excerpt of the speech can be found in the YouTube and Spotify video.
The overall best hemp flower in Texas award went to Geremy Greens. Geremy Greens is an indoor grow hemp company in Texas located in Pflugerville, TX.