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Smokeable hemp, including flowers like these, are legal to sell in Texas under a new court ruling — just not legal to process here.
The Texas Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear a request by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to overturn an appeals court ruling declaring the state's ban on the sale of smokeable hemp products unconstitutional, legal website Law360 reports. The Supreme Court requested additional information in advance of a March 2022 hearing.
That hearing will be the latest legal battle between Department of State Health Services, which issued a ban on the products in summer of 2020, and four Texas-based hemp marketers who argue the agency had no authority to do so.
The DSHS's order was partially overturned in August 2021 when the three-judge Third District Court of Appeals said the agency can't stop smokeable hemp from being sold in the state. However, the panel ruled that Texas is legally able to block those products from being manufactured here.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton appealed that ruling to the state's high court earlier this month.
Citing research from analytics giant Nielsen IQ, online trade publication Hemp Industry Daily reported earlier this year that the U.S. smokable hemp market is likely to reach $300 million to $400 million by 2025.
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