Hemp businesses on edge pending governor ban decision
June 21, 2025
Hemp businesses on edge pending governor ban decision
Time is ticking on bills awaiting Gov. Greg Abbott’s signature or veto, including a strict statewide ban on THC and cannabis products.
Abbott has until Sunday to veto Senate Bill 3 or allow it to take effect in September, with or without his signature.
WATCH HERELate Friday afternoon, an attorney representing several people in the hemp and cannabinoid industry said he is “cautiously optimistic” a veto is coming.
CBD House of Healing in Lake Highlands is stocked with products aimed at relieving pain, anxiety and sleeplessness.
SIGN UP Manager Tracy Bowen said their tinctures, topicals and edibles are all in line with existing laws.
“THC is just one of 130 cannabinoids found in the plant that contribute to the entourage effect,” said Bowen, pointing out some of their most popular full‑spectrum CBD products.
Bowen said the shop’s assorted “canna‑cocktail” elixirs and THC slushies have come to substitute alcohol for many customers.
Lone Star Politics
Covering politics throughout the state of Texas.
By Friday afternoon, anxiety loomed across the industry and those who have benefited from it.
“The feeling is sadness because our customers who have found relief with our products had a lot of issues with the pharmaceutical medications that they were taking before they came here,” said Bowen.
CBD House of Healing employs seven people in Dallas, and more at two other locations in the state.
Barring a legal battle over SB 3, Bowen fears their fate is sealed.
“If this bill isn’t vetoed and we’re not able to sell under an injunction, we will [be] locking that door on Sept. 1. No question about it,” he said. “We can’t survive selling [broad‑spectrum] CBD and CBG, so we have nothing to sell. So on September 10 we have nothing to sell, we’re locking that door.”
Along with sadness, Bowen and hemp‑industry advocates feel frustration over an industry they say is grossly misunderstood and villainized for political gain.
“They wanted to coerce the public into thinking that all of this product is nefarious so they can push their agenda to satisfy their lobbyists,” said Bowen.
As the hours tick by, supporters and their attorneys have a slight glimmer of hope that the governor may be contemplating a veto.
“A lot of the signs that we’re getting are positive for our side,” said David Sergi, who represents several business owners in the hemp and cannabinoid industry. “We’ve heard that there are some staffers that are working on an executive order that would probably accompany a veto.”
“Of course, they may just be rumors,” he added. “There are the manufacturers, they’re going to have their own lawsuit. The retailers, which is what I primarily represent, will have our own lawsuit. We’re going to be asking for an injunction to stop implementation of the bill.”
The battle over consumable THC products infused with cannabis-based product has largely centered on the sheer number of vape shops, including some businesses and distributors accused of targeting children and selling products well above the legal threshold of .3%.
“This product can never be regulated,” said Allen Police Chief Steve Dye, who has become a leading voice for the bill.
Police, especially small and rural departments, simply can’t keep up with the number of vape shops to ensure they are abiding by existing regulations and order costly tests to determine THC concentration.
“All we have to do at this point, if the law is passed, is test for presence, not quantity,” said Dye in an interview with NBC 5 this week. “Retailers have already proven many of them to be not trustworthy, so if we try to regulate it, that means we’re going to have to have constant oversight. We don’t have the resources in Texas. Regardless of how much extra you charge the retailers, you’ll never be able to keep up with the oversight. SB 3 will work because what SB 3 does, it simply says no THC.”
Bowen and Sergi understand critics say “Pandora’s box” has been opened and does include illicit businesses, but say these are problems the industry has fought to avoid for years.
“It is a fair argument and it’s a fantastic argument for much‑needed regulation which we in the industry have been asking for for years,” said Bowen. “We’ve been asking for child‑proof packaging, and an age gate at 21 which we have employed 100% since opening.”
Sergi reminded the public of the industry’s failed attempts in 2019 to get the state to implement strict regulations to keep adult products out of children’s hands.
Like many SB 3 opponents, they say the same lawmakers who have created the problem are now trying to sell the public on the solution.
Asked what, if anything, he had to say to Abbott, Bowen said: “I wouldn’t say anything to the governor because he hasn’t said anything to us. He’s hiding.”
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