Will Texas Lawmakers Bring Clarity to CBD Oil Sales?

posted on 5.06.2019

Lawmakers could give final approval this month to legislation allowing a new cash crop for Texas farmers to grow, as well as bring some clarity to advertising cannabidiol, or CBD, products in Texas. 

HB 1325, the Hemp Farming Act, by St. Rep. Tracy King, D-Uvalde, would allow Texas farmers to grow hemp.

The measure would also legalize the sale of certain hemp-derived products such CBD oil containing 0.3 percent or less of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the chemical compound that produces the “high” for which marijuana is known.

Hemp and marijuana are both members of the cannabis family of plants, but hemp was recently removed from the federal government’s list of controlled substances, which has fueled the call in Texas to allow farmers to grow it.

Farm industry experts say hemp, a drought-tolerant plant, has the potential to be a multi-billion-dollar cash crop in Texas because of soil and weather conditions.

The Texas House voted 144-0 to approve King’s bill on April 24, showing the measure has bipartisan support.

Texas law enforcement groups have not opposed HB 1325 publicly, which has also helped its forward progress.

On Tuesday, the Senate Agriculture Committee held a hearing on the bill and left it pending.

It could potentially reach the Senate floor some time next week.

Legal to Advertise?
For broadcasters, legalization of certain CBD oil products in Texas could bring clarity for those wishing to advertise such products’ availability.

TAB regularly fields calls from stations on whether it was legal to advertise CBD oil products.

Except for a prescription-only CBD oil product for a certain epileptic condition, state law bans the sale of marijuana and most hemp products. It is legal to sell THC-free hemp products such as twine for example.

Some potential CBD oil advertisers have claimed that their wares were THC-free, but law enforcement raids in various Texas jurisdictions, however, have shown otherwise. In several cases, THC field tests showed the confiscated CBD oil products had more than trace amounts of THC in them.

Law firms staffing TAB’s Texas legal hotline have advised stations that advertising CBD oil products in Texas is done at the station’s risk. A station could encounter problems from local law enforcement by promoting a product later proven to be illegal through testing.

HB 1325 would put in place testing and labeling requirements, which would remove some of the uncertainty of advertising such wares.

While that would make things easier for broadcasters, stations would still need to be concerned about unsubstantiated health claims which are prohibited by federal laws.

Questions? Contact TAB’s Michael Schneider or call (512) 322-9944.

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