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Last year, Texas lawmakers legalized hemp. Now, hemp and products with CBD, its main derivative, can be found in stores throughout the state.

But the hemp law also complicated enforcement of marijuana laws. The legal definition of the drug changed from the cannabis plant to cannabis containing more than 0.3% THC, the compound in the plant that produces a high. That definition change left prosecutors, police and crime labs scrambling to find a way to distinguish legal hemp from pot.

The Texas Tribune took a look at what has happened under the new law, and what it may mean for Texas’ future.

 Learn about The Texas Tribune’s policies, including our partnership with The Trust Project to increase transparency in news.

Todd Wiseman was the senior editor for video and multimedia at The Texas Tribune, where he worked from 2010 to 2023. Todd previously worked at the Austin School of Film and Synthetic Pictures and interned...

Jolie McCullough was a reporter at The Texas Tribune from 2015 to 2023. She began as a data visualization journalist and then reported on criminal justice policy, ranging from policing and courts to prisons...

Justin Dehn was a multimedia producer, focusing on video and audio production, from 2010 to 2023. He’s been shooting and producing news for more than two decades. Justin has been behind the camera for...

Peyton Young was a multimedia fellow in 2020. A graduate of the University of Texas, he was previously a social publishing intern for CNN and a multiplatform initiatives intern at New York Public Media....