The Austin Chronic: Ground Game Texas Vows to Keep Fighting for Decriminalization

Supporters of Dallas’ decriminalization effort at a Ground Game Texas event in 2024 (Courtesy of Ground Game Texas)

It should have been unsurprising, the recent court rulings that cities like Austin and San Marcos can’t prevent the enforcement of Texas’ unusually strict marijuana laws. The cases were handled by the 15th Court of Appeals, which was established in 2024 with three conservative judges appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott.

That court has exclusive jurisdiction on appeals involving cases brought by the state, which includes the lawsuit Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed against Austin for decriminalizing weed in 2022, which 86% of our voters supported. Paxton’s crusade had been initially dismissed by a Travis County judge.

Catina Voellinger is executive director of Ground Game Texas, a political advocacy nonprofit that has spearheaded decriminalization efforts in 11 Texas cities since 2021. Voellinger says her organization had been preparing for dealing with an appeals court designed to do the state’s bidding. Over the last two years, they’ve been baking “safe harbor” clauses into local decriminalization policy, stating that if a court deems the ordinance illegal, the city should at least deprioritize marijuana arrests.

Ground Game’s decriminalization efforts hinge on grassroots work like canvassing and petitions. The Chronic asked Voellinger what her message is to keep the people powering these movements engaged, even when they see their work struck down in court. She says that, despite Paxton winning appeals, the fight for decriminalization in Texas has demonstrated “democracy in action.”

“This was a clash between outdated power structures and communities mandating change,” Voellinger offered. “Direct democracy is how Texans fix what the state won’t – and it’s not theoretical, it’s deeply practical.

“Our initiatives are a temperature check on what Texans actually want: safer, freer communities, not manufactured political theatre where none of us want tickets to the show. When nearly a quarter of a million Texans vote to decriminalize marijuana in their cities, I think it sends a very clear message that this policy is outdated, harmful, and wasting public resources. It’s the people’s mandate, but, instead of listening, state and local leaders are trying to erase those votes, clinging to old laws, old language, and old world thinking.”

While Ground Game Texas mobilizes communities on a variety of social justice efforts – including raising living wages, climate charters, and campaign finance reform – Voellinger has witnessed the marijuana decriminalization movement especially serve as a catalyst for political involvement, including two advocates winning City Council elections in Harker Heights because existing council members repealed a voter-approved decriminalization policy.

In April’s appeals court ruling, Justice Scott K. Field opined that state laws on marijuana preempt Austin’s decriminalization ordinance. But Voellinger argues that Texas has employed that philosophy inconsistently by defying federal law, like using redistricting maps that courts have repeatedly found violate the Voting Rights Act.

Three weeks after the appeals court’s decision, its practical impact remains unclear. City officials are still disseminating a neutered press release, unwilling to say if they’ll defy the order, exhaust their legal resources to challenge it, or allow APD to begin arresting people for misdemeanor cannabis possession. Meanwhile, Voellinger says Ground Game will continue fighting for decriminalization.

“We’re going to keep organizing around anger and frustration because the fight isn’t over. We need to make sure that lives aren’t being needlessly ruined for possession of marijuana,” Voellinger says. “At its core, this is about power and who gets to decide what progress looks like. And direct democracy doesn’t bypass government – it should wake it up.”

Puff Puff Pass

The THC ban has taken a wild turn. Passed in the Senate two months ago, SB 3 has now been overhauled by the House State Affairs Committee. The revised bill is no longer a ban, but a total regulatory revamp of Texas’ consumable hemp industry in ways that are both beneficial and destructive. Under CSSB 3, THC edibles and beverages would still be permitted at a 10 mg per dose limit, and oral tinctures would fly at 2.5 mg, but THC vape pens would be outlawed and cannabis flower would be limited to a measly 0.3% THC. The rationale in allowing THC in processed products like gummies and drinks, but banning naturally occurring plant material that’s been inhaled by humans for a variety of purposes for at least 4,800 years, escapes me. It would also devastate the thousands of retailers selling consumable hemp because flower and prerolls make up a majority of their sales. The House bill also restricts hemp retailers from selling nicotine, which will put smoke shops in a tough position, given that nicotine vapes are another top seller for the industry. But there are several good things about CSSB 3: It bans synthetic cannabinoids, requires that the sellable hemp must be Texas-grown, and makes consumable hemp products restricted to ages 21 and up – which was what the industry has long asked lawmakers to do.

Medical cannabis is moving forward with a bill to expand Texas’ program clearing the House this week. HB 46, which I wrote about in the last edition of the Chronic, emerged from the House Public Health Committee as a substituted bill on May 1, before succeeding with a 118-16 vote. The revision now vastly improves the qualifying conditions for medical cannabis in Texas including glaucoma, traumatic brain injury, inflammatory bowel diseases, spinal neuropathy and degenerative disc disease, plus palliative care. It also gives honorably discharged veterans broad access to the program and allows doctors to submit new qualifying conditions to DSHS for patients if there is peer-reviewed research that cannabis may help them.

Willie Nelson’s cannabis brand Willie’s Reserve is now marketing a “THC-infused high dose social tonic” – which is a zero-proof cannabis spirit that you use as a shot or in a mixed drink. The most potent version contains 10 mg THC, 2 mg CBD, 2 mg CBG, and 200 mg of L-Theanine in each 1.5-oz. shot. It has a nice citrus flavor, kicks in fast, and pairs well with Willie’s version of Django Reinhardt’s “Nuages.” These cannabis spirits, more condensed than the common seltzer, are gaining popularity as an alcohol alternative. Another famous Austin brand, GRAV, has also launched one that’s 20 mg per dose. You can currently order both online, but that likely won’t last as the alcohol industry is using its political clout to hijack cannabis beverage retail. An April memo from the American Beverage Licensees trade group made the case: “Beverage alcohol retailers, with many decades of proven compliance, are best positioned to sell these products.”

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