The latest marijuana news from The Texas Tribune.
The pandemic-induced recession punched a hole in the Texas budget that lawmakers will try to patch when their session starts in January. And a hole in the state's finances almost always starts a conversation about how to raise money. This time, marijuana and casinos are in the spotlight. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/38792b9703fbb334de30c28d2481cf9f/Hemp%20CBD%20File%20MG%20TT%2001.jpg)
State lawmakers argue that the tax revenue and jobs created by a retail market for cannabis could help the state devastated by the coronavirus pandemic. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/9cdac4a317711c559a2fb54c46b9364e/7C2A6540.JPG)
The police chief announced the policy change Thursday, more than a year after the Texas Legislature legalized hemp and complicated marijuana prosecution throughout the state. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/30/APrice-Police-2.jpg)
The Texas Department of Public Safety said last week that it would not perform testing to distinguish between hemp and marijuana in misdemeanor cases. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/37ed19bdf6c72d10cd2e2a100c776d3f/Hemp%20CBD%20File%20MG%20TT%2003.jpg)
In this video, The Texas Tribune dug into hemp and marijuana with lawmakers, crime lab scientists, criminal defense attorneys and hemp entrepreneurs. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/0334fc7faac5aa4f878af8b076e99d2d/Hemp%20CBD%20File%20MG%20TT%2010.jpg)
Marijuana and hemp are often indistinguishable by look or smell because they both come from the cannabis plant. But hemp is legal, and marijuana is not. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/23739f0faba7d40cb96fd4cb8d2aa6f3/CBD%20Dispensary%20ATX%20MKC%20TT%202252.jpg)
The day after the Austin City Council unanimously approved stopping arrests and tickets for low-level marijuana cases, police Chief Brian Manley said he will continue to enforce such laws. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/48cad8e534a210e28b8b08a26568aae1/Brian%20Manley%20REUTERS%20TT.jpg)
The decision to back away from pursuing criminal charges against people with small amounts of pot comes after state lawmakers legalized hemp last year in a way that threw marijuana prosecution into chaos. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/d1c8ec5fe260431a46030a8435ef8560/Marijuana%20Plastic%20Bag%20IS%20TT.jpg)
Much of the sudden spike in popularity is thanks to a Texas law last year that legalized hemp, the plant from which CBD is derived. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/42a360aa42742e4819960f66be9be8a3/CBD%20Dispensary%20ATX%20MKC%20TT%200354.jpg)
On this week’s TribCast, Alexa talks to Matthew, Jolie and Emma about the governor’s decision to opt out of the federal refugee resettlement program, the state’s hemp legalization fiasco and the latest in the Texas vs. Planned Parenthood fight. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/345f1c7568be9beb53fcdb283cefd1cc/TribCast%201_15_20.jpg)
Four progressive members of the City Council are pushing the proposal, which needs two more votes to pass. Full Story
The man had told a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper that his truck contained hemp, not weed. He was released from detention after a federal crime lab tested the cargo. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/b89793f68280d411a15335966037dea8/DPS%203000%20Hemp%20TT.jpg)
After Texas legalized hemp and threw marijuana prosecution into chaos last year, prosecutors filed far fewer criminal charges, police departments paid for private testing and public crime labs were struggling to catch up. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/cba0d61a3e81ba55b1893405d5854eda/Marijuana%20Hemp%20iStock%20TT.jpg)
For his latest policy proposal, the Democratic presidential candidate returns to a cause he has championed since his days on the El Paso City Council. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/f962d3b56303f24c3041d5b0e0f505b6/02%20Beto%20Houston%20MS%20TT.jpg)
A memo obtained by The Texas Tribune instructs DPS officers to cite and release suspects in misdemeanor marijuana cases "as appropriate." Officials said the goal is to continue enforcement even though some prosecutors aren't taking new pot cases. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/2f717e4d0c0338064a3736352664e63f/Police%20Officer%20State%20Trooper%20SK%20TT.jpg)
In this edition of the TribCast, Emma talks to Patrick, Matthew, Cassi and Jolie about Beto O’Rourke’s debate performance, the accusations shaking up the Texas House speaker’s office and what Texas lawmakers really knew about how their new hemp bill would impact marijuana prosecutions. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/14697ad88cfdd847a0983df5405db922/TribCast%207_31_19%20JF%20TT.jpg)
Crime labs repeatedly told lawmakers and budget officials that they couldn't distinguish between hemp and marijuana without new testing resources. The issue got almost no attention. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/6047324ca37432dea4966e4d8e1a6f45/03_Marijuana_Plants_Texas_MKC_TT.jpg)
Texas lawmakers made it legal to farm hemp and, incidentally, harder to prosecute people caught with small amounts of marijuana, which is still illegal. Now they're bickering about whether that's the fault of the new law or of local prosecutors. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/77cc6aa32e2da2ae73f88da2d10f69d2/Cannabis_sativa_plant_HEMP.JPG)
Prosecutors and crime lab scientists were scrambling to find a solution after a change in the state's definition of marijuana imperiled criminal cases. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/cbc045708a9b81c4b0847418dcacf53b/Marijuana%20plants%20iStock%20TT.jpg)
A law legalizing hemp changed the definition of marijuana, causing district attorneys across the state to drop low-level possession cases and stop accepting new ones. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/27f0f699efb34e7c006d9e5914855f90/Marijuana%20iStock%20TT.jpg)