Key Republicans are already planning another attempt at banning all THC products in Texas, insisting that the tighter regulations Gov. Greg Abbott imposed through an executive order last year aren’t doing enough.
“I’m filing the ban again,” state Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, said during a hearing at the Texas Capitol last week. “There’s nothing good in this stuff. There’s no virtue in it.”
Perry’s comments come just over a year after Abbott vetoed Perry’s previous attempt to ban all hemp-derived THC products. Abbott said then that the bill was “well-intentioned” but would not have survived legal challenges. Instead, Abbott pushed for tighter regulations and tougher enforcement of current laws to lower the potency of what is available on the market and keep other products from getting into the hands of children.
Texas has more than 8,500 retailers selling hemp-derived THC products, including gummies and drinks. Some estimates say the burgeoning industry is now worth $8 billion.
Perry said attempts to regulate the industry aren’t working. He accused the THC industry of constantly changing its methods to get around whatever regulations the state puts in its way. And he pointed to data from the Department of State Health Services that show an increasing number of hospitalizations and calls to poison control hotlines for THC and cannabis complications over the last few years.
“So there’s no path to fix this other than getting rid of it,” Perry said of his plans for the next legislative session, which starts in January.
Texas Police Chiefs Association chief Steve Dye testified during the hearing that law enforcement has too many barriers in enforcing the laws and regulations already on the books.
“State regulations have not been effective,” he said.
Perry compared the state’s battle against THC to the war on drugs and praised former First Lady Nancy Reagan, who led the “Just Say No” campaign to stop drug use in America in the 1980s.
“She was made fun of and still is today,” Perry said. “But, you know, she was right. She saw the big picture of where this stuff is so insidious and gets into every fiber of society and every element of the family.”
Critics of a proposed ban say Perry’s comments fit with the rest of the two-hour hearing, which they said was completely one-sided against THC and cannabis products. The Senate took no testimony from the industry or supporters. The whole event was short on medical and scientific expertise, said Susan Hays, an attorney who specializes in cannabis law.