Two bills addressing reducing penalties for marijuana possession and THC concentrates have been voted out of the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee. The bills now heads to the Calendars Committee where it awaits scheduling to be heard by the full Texas House of Representatives. Read the full text of HB 441 and HB 2593.  Watch the Hearing

HB 1535, authored by Chairwoman Stephanie Klick, was voted unanimously out of the Texas House Public Health Committee after a hearing on Wednesday. The bill now heads to Calendars Committee where it awaits scheduling to be heard by the full Texas House of Representatives. The bill would add cancer, chronic pain, and PTSD for veterans while allowing the Department of State Health Services to add new qualifying conditions through their administrative rule-making process. HB 1535 would also raise the THC cap to 5% and create “Institutional Review Boards” which will facilitate research and track the impact of medical cannabis on patients participating in the program. Watch the hearing!

Next week, there are three hearings scheduled to address cannabis policy in Texas. Below is information on each hearing, the bills and how you can submit written testimony. Tuesday, April 6th at 1pm: The House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee will meet to consider a number of marijuana bills which aim to reduce penalties for possession. Click here to learn more about all bills up for consideration. Submit written comments electronically to the Criminal Jurisprudence Committee. These comments will be included in the official legislative record and are a great way for you to show your support. Comments can be as simple as, “I support this legislation. Thank you for your consideration and service!” (Please note that you will have up to 3000 characters.) You could also include a personal […]

The Texas Legislature is in session and dozens of marijuana-related bills​ have been introduced, including proposals to expand access to medical cannabis. We are at the Capitol with our educational exhibit, including displays featuring information about the cannabis plant, dosing, efficacy, safety and supporting organization as well as important  perspectives from Texas medical professionals and patients. We were honored to collaborate with our coalition, Texans for Responsible Marijuana Policy, on the creation and production of this exhibit. Review the graphics and their sources below. Take a video tour of the exhibit.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMarch, 22, 2021 How Texans Stop Pain with a Plant: Findings from a Survey of Medical Cannabis Users Austin, TX – Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and Foundation for an Informed Texas have worked together on a survey of Texas patients to better understand patient needs, why they use cannabis, the conditions which cannabis helps, the effects of cannabis on these conditions, and to provide accurate data. The survey was conducted online between August 11, 2020, and October 6, 2020, and recruited participants through medical cannabis patient networks, including Foundation for an Informed Texas. Review the one pager, the full report and visit the Baker Institute site. Key Findings: 84% of respondents have considered leaving Texas for a state with a more […]