by Houston Criminal Defense AttorneyApplication Checklist: Texas Consumable Hemp & CBD Product License
The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) has recently release proposed regulations for the manufacturing, processing, distributing, and retail sale of consumable hemp products. While the draft is yet final, it does give a preview of what hemp & cbd businesses can expect to produce in order to receive a proper license and what Texas hemp & cbd license attorneys will need to file a complete application
Texas Consumable Hemp & CBD License Checklist
1) Application for Manufacturing, Processing, Distribution
- Legal description of EACH location – including the GPS coordinates (this includes each manufacturing, processing, and storage facility);
- Written consent from the property owner (if the applicant is not the property owner) allowing DPS (or any other state or local law enforcement agency) to enter to inspect;
- A fingerprint-based criminal background check from each applicant (ineligible if felony controlled substance conviction within 10 years);
- Name of license applicant;
- Business name (if different than applicant);
- Mailing address of the business;
- Street address of the facility;
- Primary business contact telephone number;
- Personal email address of the applicant;
- Email address of the business (if different than the applicant’s email)
- If a person owns or operates two or more facilities, each facility shall be licensed separately by listing the name and address of each facility on SEPERATE application forms;
- All Fees must be submitted with the application
- Manufacturing, Processing, Distributing Application Fees: $250 for EACH facility
2) Application for Retail Consumable Hemp & CBD
- Applications must be submitted by the owner, operator, OR owner designee and shall contain the following information:
- Business name;
- Mailing address of facility;
- Street address of each location;
- Primary business contact telephone number;
- Phone number for each location;
- Primary business email address
- All fees must be submitted with the application
- Retail Application Fee: $150 for EACH location
Feel free to contact our Cannabis Law Firm to assist you and your business with any hemp & CBD needs at 713-568-7011 or 713-237-8380. You may also email us at [email protected].
by Houston Criminal Defense AttorneyListen to Sam Adamo talk Texas Hemp & CBD
Recently Sam Adamo Jr was asked to give his take on the status of hemp and cbd in Texas.
Also the USDA has approved Texas Hemp plan, now the TDA will adopt these rules and then shortly thereafter licensing will begin. Be ready!
by Houston Criminal Defense AttorneyCurrent State of Marijuana in Texas
Add Houston with Fort Bend and Tarrant County, in not prosecuting low level marijuana charges as part of the fallout of HB 1325. Even those looking to prosecute larger marijuana amounts are going to run into problems (see Montgomery, Galveston, Bexar, Grimes County).
If someone you know has been arrested on a drug charge, contact the Adamo & Adamo Law Firm.
by Houston Criminal Defense AttorneyTexas Cannabis Lawyer & Hemp & CBD Lawyer
Hemp and CBD, where is it headed in Texas now?
On June 10, 2019, Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 1325 into law, to allow for the production, manufacture, retail sale, and inspection of industrial hemp crops and products in Texas. This includes products for human consumption that may contain cannabidiol, also known as CBD, as well as certain other parts of the hemp plant.
Under HB 1325 the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) must first file a state plan to monitor and regulate the production of hemp in Texas, and have that plan approved by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) before an agency can create the rules necessary to implement the rest of HB 1325.
According to the USDA website, “it is USDA’s goal to issue regulations in the fall of 2019 to accommodate the 2020 planting season. As required by law, USDA is committed to completing its review of [state] plans within 60 days, once regulations are effective.”
What is DSHS required to do under HB 1325?
When the submitted TDA state plan is approved by USDA, HB 1325 requires DSHS to:
- Establish a manufacturing licensure program for consumable hemp products.
- Create a registration process for retailers selling consumable hemp products containing CBD.
- Work with DPS on random testing for consumable hemp products containing CBD sold at retail. Random testing will not occur until the retail registration process is established after the TDA state plan approval.
While DSHS rules development will begin before the TDA plan is approved, final rules cannot be completed until after the TDA state plan approval. Therefore, DSHS may only begin issuing licenses and accepting registrations after TDA’s plan is approved by USDA and DSHS adopts rules consistent with the TDA approved plan.
What is DSHS’ relationship with Hemp and CBD?
DSHS has oversight of food, drug, cosmetics and dietary supplement manufacturers, distributors and retailers, including those that may use or market hemp or cannabidiol (CBD) as an ingredient in those products. Local jurisdictions may also regulate retail sales of food, drugs, cosmetics and dietary supplements, but may not prohibit the sale of consumable hemp products.
DSHS does not regulate an individual’s private possession or private use of any food, drug, cosmetic product or dietary supplement. Neither does DSHS administer the Texas Compassionate Use Act.
Can I manufacture consumable hemp products?
The manufacturing license for consumable hemp will not be available until the USDA approves Texas’ hemp plan. That plan is under development by TDA. State licensing rules and requirements relating to the manufacture of consumable hemp products may only be proposed after the approval of the plan by the USDA.
Until the plan is approved and rules are in place, current law applies. Only ingredients on the FDA’s Generally Regarded As Safe (GRAS) list or otherwise federally approved may be used in foods, drugs, cosmetics and dietary supplements. There are currently three hemp-derived products on the GRAS list; hulled hemp seeds, hemp seed protein and hemp seed oil. Manufacturers of these products are governed by Health and Safety Code Chapter 431. Manufacturers interested in producing consumable hemp products not containing CBD may currently apply for a DSHS food manufacturer license.
Can I sell consumable hemp products at retail now?
Yes, Section 11 of HB 1325 allows for existing retailers to possess, transport or sell consumable hemp products that become part of the retailers’ inventory prior to the effective date of DSHS rules resulting from HB 1325. The retailer must be licensed through DSHS as currently required by law. Retailers selling consumable hemp products must ensure the product is safe for consumption by being free of heavy metals, pesticides, harmful microorganisms or residual solvents. Additionally, consumable hemp products sold must not contain more than 0.3 percent THC.
During routine inspection or complaint investigations, DSHS, within its statutory authority, may detain products, including dietary supplements, that are labeled as or contain hemp, including CBD, and that make unproven health claims, such as preventing, diagnosing, treating and/or curing a health or medical condition. Products that are being manufactured or handled in a manner that creates a health hazard for people who may use it may also be detained.
Note: HB 1325 contains limitations regarding retail sales of out-of-state consumable hemp products. The products must be processed or manufactured in another state in compliance with:
- that state or jurisdiction’s plan approved by the USDA;
- in the absence of a state submitted plan, a plan established by the USDA; or,
- the laws of that state or jurisdiction if the products are tested in compliance with, or similar to those set out in Section 443.151 of HB 1325.
Upon approval of the Texas state hemp plan by USDA, DSHS will establish a process to register retailers selling consumable hemp products containing CBD. At that time, existing retailers selling consumable hemp products containing CBD and new retailers wishing to sell these products will be required to register with DSHS.
by Houston Criminal Defense AttorneyGauging the temperature: Hemp & CBD in Texas
As of April 2, 2019 (note: hemp is anything but a static point in Texas, it is a wave in constant change).
by Houston Criminal Defense AttorneyApril Fools or April Gold: Cannabis Legislative Update
Four Hearings on Texas Hemp Bills Today
Today, April 1, 2019 at 10:30 a.m. the Texas House Committee on Agricultural and Livestock will hold hearings on four (4) bills related to Texas Hemp. Specifically, TX HB1657, TX HB1230, TX HB989, and TX HB1325. Stay tuned and follow here.
by Houston Criminal Defense AttorneySeminole County CBD Businesses Beware
Seminole County, Texas: Lubbock DA Issues Legal Warning About CBD Oil
The Lubbock Texas District Attorney’s Office recently issued a warning regarding CBD products to local hemp businesses.
Is the Lubbock District Attorney Right?
As is the norm with CBD Products, sort of and our CBD lawyers have written about it here. THE YES: legit CBD products most likely contain THC. Even if you have a lab report like this
Yes
Legit Hemp and CBD products most likely contain at least some level of THC. THC is an illegal substance in Texas under Tex. Health & Safety Code 481.103. Specifically, THC falls under Penalty Group 2 and a single bottle of oil can be prosecuted in Texas as a Second Degree Felony (2 – 20 years).
No
As of the date on the Lubbock District Attorney’s social media post, even CBD products without THC (classified as “marijuana extract”) could be prosecuted as a misdemeanor under Tex. Health & Safety Code 481.119. However the phrase “marijuana extract” is set to be removed as a Schedule 1 Narcotic on April 5, 2019, thus CBD products without THC are legal as long as they do not fall under or contain another unlawful substance.
I have a CBD lab report saying THC is Not Detectable (ND).
If you have a CBD lab report that looks like something like this . . .
. . . then you are off to a good start. However, that does not mean: 1) that there isn’t any THC at all in the CBD product, and 2) that the lab’s testing methods meet the quality, standards and guidelines of Texas testing methods. So while having a lab report stating your CBD product does not have a “detectable amount” of THC is a good start, it does not mean that is entirely the case creating another big issue for CBD business owners.
by Houston Criminal Defense AttorneyState of the Lone Star: Hemp, CBD, and #fakenews
Do Not Believe Everything You Read on the Internet!
With a click of a mouse there is unlimited access to a wealth of information. This information however isn’t always reliable and often falls under #fakenews. Such is the case with current Hemp and CBD laws in Texas.
Take for example this recent hemp headline.
This is how the headline should read.
In fact his article is littered with #fakenews regarding hemp and CBD laws in Texas.
What this article is attempting to report on is the Commissioner of the Texas Department of Health & Services removal of “marijuana extract”, defined as an extract containing one or more cannabinoids that has been derived from the Cannabis plant, from the list of Schedule 1 controlled substances.
What is not removed from the list of controlled substances is THC. Any amount of THC (yes, even less than 0.3%) is a felony in Texas. To put it on paper. . .
The Adamo & Adamo Law Firm is a criminal defense and Cannabis Law Firm available to assist business owners and agricultural developers in Cannabis related compliance including licensing, production, testing, and more. Contact our lawyers for more information regarding hemp and CBD products.
by Houston Criminal Defense AttorneyI’m Not a Player, I Just Hemp a Lot
Texas Hemp Law Update
Yesterday, the Texas Department of Health Services, specifically the commissioner, declassified “marijuana extract” (i.e. CBDs) from the list of Schedule 1 controlled substances (effective 21 days from now).
Contrary to some, specifically law enforcement, our attorneys have maintained the position this make-shift hemp and CBD provision was unlawful and invalid because of the Federal Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (Farm Bill).
Basically, in adding “marijuana extract” initially, Texas was following the Feds lead in making CBDs illegal.. Naturally, when the feds removed it, Texas under law, should have followed suit. They didn’t . . .until just now.
To clarify though, this still doesn’t make hemp legal in Texas.
The artist formerly known as “marijuana extract” made possessing, distributing or selling hemp products a class B misdemeanor (punishable up to 180 days in jail). Some law enforcements agencies (we see you Tyler PD) were even on record as using the now declassified amendment in seizing CBD products. Now that “marijuana extract” has been removed, it is no longer a crime to possess, sell, distribute hemp, UNLESS . . .
it has any THC. THC is still illegal in Texas. CBD oils (and the like) containing any amounts of THC still fall under penalty group 2 as a controlled substance. BUT . . .
district attorney offices and law enforcement agencies are reluctant to pursue and prosecute hemp while the 86th legislative session tries to sort all this out.
Stay tuned . . .
And be sure to contact our Texas CBD Lawyers for more information. Help us, help you!