Texas hemp industry sues over new THC rules that include a ban on smokable hemp
Members of Texas’ hemp industry are asking a Travis County Court to halt some of the state’s new rules regulating THC products.
Industry representatives say they aren’t challenging age limits for the products and consumer protections such as labeling requirements — measures that were part of the Texas Department of State Health Service rules that went into effect on March 31.
But other parts of the regulations go beyond the scope of what state agencies are legally allowed to do, plaintiffs argue.
“Lawmakers carefully debated hemp policy and chose not to change the statutory THC standard during the 89th Legislature in 2025,” Texas Hemp Business Council President Cynthia Cabrera said in a written statement. “State agencies cannot override the decision by regulation. Our members support reasonable, lawful regulation, but regulation must follow the Constitution and the statutes the Legislature enacted.”
The Texas Legislature approved a ban on consumable THC products last year, but Texas Gov. Greg Abbott vetoed the legislation and issued an executive order directing state agencies to come up with regulations after special sessions ended with no hemp bill.
DSHS and the Texas Health and Human Services Commission are among the defendants named in the lawsuit. The agencies’ commissioners and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton are also included in their official capacities.
Plaintiffs include hemp advocate groups and consumable hemp product manufacturers and retailers. Lewisville-based retailer Wyatt Purp, LLC and Treehouse Dispensary, which has a shop in Fort Worth, are among those suing the state.
The lawsuit takes issue with rules that “exceed statutory limits by redefining lawful hemp, expanding regulatory scope, and imposing unauthorized economic burdens. “ Some of the rules also conflict with existing state laws, according to the lawsuit.
The new regulations create expensive, ongoing hardships for hemp businesses, the plaintiffs argue.
The “cumulative compliance burdens” could shutter some businesses, per the lawsuit, which also raises concerns about the effect transportation-related rules will have on manufacturers.
The rules effectively bans the sell of smokeable cannabis products because testing is now based on “total THC” content, including THCA, which becomes THC when heated.
“It is not an argument that THCA should be excluded from regulatory consideration, or that a total delta-9 THC standard is unsound as a matter of policy,” the lawsuit reads. “Whether to adopt such a standard is a legitimate legislative question. The defect addressed here is purely constitutional: the agency lacks authority to impose that standard through rulemaking when the Legislature’s statute specifies a different one.”
A spokesperson for DSHS said the agency doesn’t comment on pending litigation. An HHSC spokesperson directed the Star-telegram to DSHS.
A spokesperson for the Texas attorney general did not immediately return an interview request. A spokesperson for the governor, who isn’t named as a defendant, declined to comment.
