texas marijuana laws

Earlier this year, the Marijuana Policy Project announced the start of a multi-year campaign in Texas to pass a trifecta of bills to improve cannabis policies. We'll be working with a coalition of allies to: 1) create a compassionate medical marijuana program; 2) replace criminal punishments for cannabis possession with a civil fine; and 3) to legalize marijuana for adults 21 and over and to tax and regulate it likewise to alcohol. We recently retained a political director including a contract lobbyist, who are now both dedicated to bringing positive change in Texas on behalf of these issues. If you've got a story you'd like to share with others about how medical cannabis has positively impacted your life, or how dope prohibition policies have harmed you or others you know, please contact us. Also, if you'd like to contribute to the bud policy reform effort in Texas, please click here.

Both the present leadership and nominees for prominent political offices are increasingly calling for cannabis policy reform in the Lone Star State. On January 23, Gov. Rick Perry called for the state to go toward decriminalizing small quantities of marijuana. On February 11, gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis took cannabis policy reform in Texas one step further and suggested her support not only for decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana, but also for medical marijuana for seriously ill patients. And Michael Fjetland, Texas nominee for U.S. Senate, signaled his support for a taxed and controlled system similar to Colorado's.

A poll commissioned by the Marijuana Policy Project in Texas demonstrates 61% of the voters support reducing penalties for the possession of a small amount of marijuana from a criminal offense to a civil penalty much like a traffic ticket. Fifty-eight percent of voters support accessibility to medical marijuana, and another 58% support a taxed and controlled system similar to those in Washington and Colorado. Individuals want change, and it seems that politicians in Texas are taking notice. If you concur that marijuana should be taxed and regulated in Texas, be sure to let your state representative and senator know!

Texas marijuana laws

In Texas, a conviction for possession of up to two ounces of marijuana can lead to a jail sentence of up to six months and a fine of up to $2,000. According to reports of arrests by state law enforcement to the FBI, Texas made over 72,000 arrests in 2012 for marijuana-related offenses. An unbelievable 98% of those arrests were for possession of cannabis. During the same year, 90% of all reported burglaries -- which include home invasions -- and 88% of all motor vehicle thefts went unsolved by law enforcement. Additionally alarming is the fact that African Americans are more than twice as likely to be arrested for cannabis possession in Texas as whites, despite similar cannabis use rates. To find out more on how the war on marijuana is frequently waged unequally between races