Top Austin Headlines of 2021: Texas Inches Closer to Legal Weed

Photo by John Anderson

This fall, the state of Texas opened a Pandora's box that leaked cannabinoids and a skunky aroma. In October, the Department of State Health services posted a notice on its website "clarifying" that Delta-8, an isomer of the psychoactive component (Delta-9 THC) found in cannabis that can induce a mild high, had in January been added to the state's Schedule I list of controlled substances. The news came as a shock to hundreds of vendors across the state who for more than a year had been selling Delta-8 products, after the Texas Legislature in 2019 legalized hemp and low-THC cannabis production. Under Texas law, possession of a Schedule I substance can carry jail time and hefty fines; had manufacturers and retailers (and their customers) unwittingly been operating outside of the law?

Several cannabusinesses quickly filed lawsuits against the state, claiming DSHS had provided insufficient notice of the change and of the hearings where it was considered. Austin-based hemp and Delta-8 retailer Hometown Hero successfully argued in November that an injunction was necessary to prevent "irreparable harm," both to the revenues of Delta-8 businesses and to the health of many Texans, including veterans who've come to rely on the products to treat PTSD and physical pain. The ruling was quickly upheld on appeal, and though the state is expected to continue the legal challenge, it's clear that Texas' attempts to both legalize and criminalize cannabis at the same time are losing their potency.