Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says he's still on the fence about whether he'll sign or veto Senate Bill 3, a measure that would ban consumable products containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive compound found in cannabis.
Abbott addressed the question Monday at a signing ceremony for a trio of property tax cut bills.
"I've got a thousand of these on my desk that I have to get through," Abbott said, holding up a bill, "and I haven't gotten to SB 3 yet, so I can't tell you what the factors are. Let me tell you this. There are meaningful positions and concerns on both sides of the issue, and I'll look into all of those and evaluate all of those."
Abbott is under competing pressures on how to act on SB 3, according to Katharine Neill Harris, a drug policy researcher at Rice University's Baker Institute. The consumable THC industry in Texas, which sprouted up after a law passed in 2019, is worth several billion dollars annually, according to industry sources and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who has advocated for the ban.
"On the one hand, the lieutenant governor has very much expressed his desire to see Senate Bill 3 be signed into law. You have a lot of pressure from him and also from the medical marijuana industry as well to outlaw these products," Harris said. "On the other hand, you know, you have the hemp lobbying industry that is really advocating against this ban. The last time I saw, there was over 135,000 signatures on a petition asking the governor to veto it."
Patrick, the leading political force behind SB 3, has been touring the state to pump up support for a complete ban on THC. But Harris questioned how much leverage Patrick actually has in this case.
"There were a lot of successful bills from the standpoint of the right," Harris said. "I think that if (Abbott) were to veto (SB 3), one side's going to be angry, and if he were to sign it, another side's going to be angry. But I think that, at the end of the day, they will probably cancel each other out, and it's not as important politically in Texas as issues like immigration, like school vouchers, gun rights, abortion, those other sorts of issues."
Abbott has until this Sunday, June 22, to make up his mind. If he doesn't sign or veto SB 3 by then, the measure will become law by default without his signature.
If Abbott were to veto the bill, that would leave the state without age restrictions or product quality control on THC for at least another two years – unless Abbott called lawmakers back to address the issue in a special session.
"I do think that a veto with a special session is possible," Harris said. "If he were to veto it, there would certainly be a lot of pressure then to request the Legislature to come back and look back at the issue again and pass something that's a bit more moderate."
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