Texas Hemp Businesses Sue Over New THC Rules

0:00It's April 8th. Welcome to Dallas News Today, powered by AI. I'm Cory with the story. Texas Hem Businesses are hitting the courts hard, filing a lawsuit in Travis County to block parts of the state's new THC product rules from the Department of State Health Services. These regs kicked in on March 31st, and while the industry backstuff like age checks and clear labels, they say other bits overstep what. Agencies can legally do. Flashback to last year, lawmakers in the 89th legislature pushed a full ban on consumable THC, but Governor Greg Abbott shut it down with a veto. He then ordered agencies to craft rules after special sessions fizzled out without a deal, keeping hemp policy in limbo. Industry folks, including groups like the Texas Hem Business Council, plus retailers Wyatt Perp in Lewisville and Treehouse Dispensary in For Worth, are leading the charge. Their president, Cynthia Cabrera, stresses that agencies can't rewrite laws, the legislature already set on THC limits. It's got to stay constitutional. The big gripes?

1:06Rules that tweak what counts as legal hemp, slap on heavy costs, and clash with existing statutes. A key punch, switching tests to total THC, including THCA that heats up into THC, which basically kills sales of smokeable products and crushes small. Operators, defendants like DSHS, Health and Human Services, and Attorney General Ken Paxton aren't talking yet as the case brews. This fight could reshape how Texas handles its booming hemp scene, with businesses holding tight for a judges call.