Beginning July 31, Texas will ban the sale of smokeable products containing delta-8, delta-10 and several other intoxicating cannabinoids.
This follows a Texas Supreme Court ruling that clears the way for long-delayed regulations to take effect.
Those changes could reshape an industry that has grown rapidly since hemp was legalized in 2019, and it's likely just the first step in a broader fight at the state capital over THC — the psychoactive component in marijuana.
Austin Wood, staff writer for the Dallas Observer, wrote about the new regulations in his article, "Delta 8, other THC products to be banned in Texas starting July 31."
Woods joined NTX Now's Miranda Suarez and Ron Corning to lay out what North Texans need to know ahead of the ban.
These interview highlights have been edited for length and clarity. To hear the full conversation, click the 'listen' button above.
Which products won't be available anymore?
Wood says it's mainly smokeable products that aren't allowed to be sold after the ban takes effect.
"We have the Texas Hemp Business Council telling business owners that you need to get these off the shelf as soon as possible," he said.
That includes products that contain delta-8, delta-9, delta-6, and THCP.
Wood said customers will likely still be able to buy topicals, some edibles, and products with a lower "potency."
There's a lot of uncertainty
Wood says the legal back and forth over what hemp can and can't be sold in Texas has been confusing for business owners.
"It seems like a never-ending flow of just these contradictions and changing, constantly evolving rules," he said. "I think everybody's trying to really get a grasp on it."
Woods explained that the battle over regulation of hemp products started after the 2018 U.S. Farm Bill removed hemp from the list of controlled substances, instead defining it as an agricultural commodity. A year later, Gov. Greg Abbott signed House Bill 1325, legalizing the sale and production of products containing less than 0.3% delta-9 THC.
"You set delta-9 THC as kind of the standard for what legal hemp is," Woods said. "Now what the state, and I think a lot of policymakers, failed to consider at the time, is that you have...this whole host of other intoxicating, psychoactive cannabinoids that people can put in these products."
Some regulations may be a good thing
In a previous conversation with NTX Now, Katharine Harris, drug policy expert with the Baker Institute at Rice University, said hemp regulations are common sense, given that the product could have repercussions on public health.
"From that standpoint, I think it makes sense to have the bar for entry a little bit higher," Harris said.
Woods said there's a sense that bad actors in the state may be putting out products that could have negative side effects.
"We've heard people in the industry themselves even acknowledge that we need further regulations," he said.
The economic impact
There are more than 9,100 stores licensed to sell hemp products in Texas and the hemp industry is a multi-billion dollar industry. Woods said the ban's impact on businesses who sell hemp products will be significant.
"This is an industry that's evolved around a lot of these products since 2019," he said. "Business owners are definitely going to have to adapt and evolve with whatever comes next."
Miranda Suarez and Ron Corning are the hosts of KERA's NTX Now. Got a tip? Email Miranda at msuarez@kera.org or Ron at rcorning@kera.org.
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