EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Cannabis shop owners in El Paso are breathing a sigh of relief after Texas Governor Greg Abbott vetoed Senate Bill 3, which would have banned all products containing THC.
“Senate Bill 3 is well-intentioned. But it would never go into effect because of valid constitutional challenges,” read Gov. Abbott’s veto proclamation issued on Monday, June 24.
Gov. Abbott instead called for a special legislative session to be held in July for Texas lawmakers to contemplate a law that would implement “strong” regulations on the Texas hemp industry.
He suggested that legislators look to the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission’s (TABC) regulations on alcohol as a model.
Abbott’s move put him at odds with Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who has been the leading advocate for SB3. Patrick slammed Abbott at a press conference on Tuesday, June 23.
“It puzzles me why my friend Gov. Abbott would, at the last minute, at about 22 minutes after 11, decide to veto this bill,” Patrick said. “In reading the proclamation, one can only come to this conclusion, which surprises me. The governor of the state of Texas wants to legalize recreational Marijuana in the state of Texas.”
Meanwhile, a cannabis shop owner in El Paso said they are more at ease after fearing for months that they would be put out of business.
She said cannabis shops have been thriving in El Paso because many people are becoming more informed about the diverse options of cannabinoids available for purchase beyond marijuana, which is illegal in Texas.
“People are starting to see the benefits of it. I sometimes help customers, and they’re like, ‘I’ve never dealt with this, but I hear good things about it.’ I recommend them stuff, and then I see them coming back and they’re like, ‘you know, it actually really worked. It helped with my depression and with my pain.’ Some cancer patients, as well, they’re skeptical about it, and I let them know what to try, and they end up trying it, and they end up coming back,” Haide Lara, a manager at Nuggies Cannabis located in East El Paso, said.
Lara said they have developed a healthy customer base that would otherwise be pushed to seek illegal avenues to obtain cannabis if the ban had succeeded.
“It could get to the point where they’re going to really need it, and they’re going to seek street marijuana, which we don’t know what’s in it. We completely know what’s in our products. It’s natural, compared to street items, we don’t know what they put in it,” Lara said.
Lara said that they would welcome more regulations around the hemp industry, especially those that would be aimed at limiting what cannabinoid minors can get access to.
Lara also said that she and many of her customers believe the hemp industry in El Paso and Texas is better and offers more than dispensaries in New Mexico, where marijuana is legal.
She said that New Mexico dispensaries focus on selling marijuana, and customers lose out on variety. Therefore, she called for Texas legislators to allow the hemp industry to continue thriving.
“We’re actually a modern cannabinoid society,” Lara said. “So, we carry more than just your traditional THC. We carry over 100 cannabinoids here at the store. So, what makes us a little different from New Mexico and other dispensaries or CBD shops is the parcels that we carry, of course, the different options for customers,” Lara said.
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