Last Look

The Laws of Texas

Long before Texan Ted Cruz took office as a United States Senate in 2013, El Paso, Texas was the first in the United States to outlaw cannabis in 1915. The country’s first regulation was the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 outlawing cannabis for any use. Funny thing: In 2020 Texas inadvertently decriminalized cannabis. According to The Spokesman-Review in an April 2021 article, “Texas law was simple in its intent. Cannabis was simply banned — and had been — for over 100 years. But last year, lawmakers decided that they would allow their farmers to begin cultivating hemp. It is useful to remember that hemp is a non-intoxicating plant that makes CBD oil, fiber and roughly 25,000 other consumer products. When legislation was written to allow hemp production, the law stated that cannabis with a THC content of less than 0.3% could now be grown.” So how do you prove an illegal cannabis possession? Have it tested, that’s what, resulting in a backlog at Texan labs, which maintained “they would not test in cases where 7 grams or less were involved. And it was their stance that essentially decriminalized minor cannabis possession. No test, no conviction.”

CBTS Staff Report