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  • Home
  • News and Updates
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    • In the News
  • Policy
    • Texas Cannabis Bills
    • Regulate THC
    • Statewide Decrim
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  • Resources
    • Advocacy Resources
    • Legislator Voting Records
    • Cannabis Policy Reports
  • Contact Legislators
  • Policy Conference
  • Donate Today
  • Texas HB 46 Overview
Texans for Responsible Marijuana Policy

In the News

TribCast | Texas Tribune (April 1, 2025)

THC - to ban, or to regulate? That is the question of the session.


Eleanor talks with Texas Tribune politics reporter Jasper Scherer and Heather Fazio, with the Texas Cannabis Policy Center, about how we got here and why this issue is taking center stage this legislative session.

Capitol Tonight | Spectrum News 1 (March 20, 2025)

Representing the Texas Cannabis Policy Center, Heather Fazio discusses Senate Bill 3, cannabis regulation, and the negative impact of cannabis criminalization. Learn more about SB 3.

Will THC see its final death blow in Texas this session?

Beaumont Enterprise (4/24/2025) “In the interest of public health and safety, regulation is the only approach that makes sure that products are tested, that packages are properly labeled, and that consumers are safe,” [Heather Fazio] said. “If we want to protect young people, regulation is the only way to actually do that.”

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Texas House bill meant to regulate THC would actually help ban it

Houston Chronicle (4/7/2025) Heather Fazio, director of Texas Cannabis Policy Center—a coalition of organizations that advocates for policy reform—said she saw a lot more curiosity from House committee members than in the Senate hearing. 


"Most importantly, I think that they're recognizing that to regulate and allow hemp products in beverages while criminalizing people for eating them in gummies, for example, just doesn't make sense," Fazio said. 

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The Austin Chronic: The House’s Alternative to SB 3 Would Still Outlaw Flower and Edibles

Austin Chronicle (4/4/2025) “While the Senate eagerly passed SB 3, a draconian bill to ban all THC and effectively shut down the hemp industry, the House is more inclined to support regulation,” explains Heather Fazio, director for the Texas Cannabis Policy Center. 


“We’ve worked for years to help them understand the harm caused by cannabis prohibition and we’re optimistic that our representatives will pass a bill that better reflects the people of Texas.”

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Texas wants to rein in marijuana loopholes. Here are lawmakers’ plans for THC

Fort Worth Star-Telegram (3/28/2025) There are parts of both the House and Senate bill that the Texas Cannabis Policy Center supports, Fazio said, pointing to regulations like age restrictions and packaging and labeling restrictions for not advertising to children. 


“We, however, are not going to be supporting any legislation that prohibits responsible adult use of THC,” she said.

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Texas Senate Passes Bill To Ban Hemp-Derived THC Products As New Poll Shows Voters Support Keeping Market Legal

Marijuana Moment (3/19/2025) “Concerns about semi-synthetic THC can be directly addressed through regulatory enforcement and by legalizing natural cannabis,” Heather Fazio, director of the group, said. “It is Texas’s commitment to prohibition that has created this market for converted cannabinoids in the first place.”


“If lawmakers are serious about protecting consumers, the logical step is to legalize and properly regulate botanical cannabis with naturally occurring THC, rather than enacting broad bans that drive demand for illicit alternatives,” she said.

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Texas hemp advocates claim ‘prohibition is not the answer’ ahead of Senate vote on all-THC ban

Lone Star Live (3/18/2025) Hemp advocates in the Lone Star State continue to sound the alarm on Senate Bill 3. Heather Fazio, the director of the Texas Cannabis Policy Center, slammed the Texas Legislature for “resorting to a failed prohibitionist approach.”


“We recognize the need for stronger regulations to protect consumers and prevent underage access, but prohibition is not the answer,” Fazio said in a news release. “Banning these products will not eliminate demand — it will only drive sales into the illicit market, where there are no safety standards, ID checks, or oversight.”

Read More Here

Texas’ hemp producers and sellers say bill would cripple the industry

Texas Standard (3/13/2025) SB3 would ban the sale of consumable THC products, but cannabis reform advocates worry it would have far-reaching – and expensive – consequences. Heather Fazio, director of the marijuana reform advocacy group Texas Cannabis Policy Center, spoke with the Standard’s Angela Kocherga to explain why the hemp industry opposes the bill.


"The solution is not prohibition. We know from many years of history that prohibition simply doesn’t work. Instead, what we’d like to see instituted are sensible regulations..."

Listen Here

Texas Senate committee advances bill to ban hemp products that contain THC

NewsRadio 1080 KRLD (3/10/2025) Heather Fazio, director of the Texas Cannabis Policy Center, said store owners are calling for regulation rather than total prohibition.


“We want to see safety standards put in place to protect consumers, but banning these products outright would devastate small businesses and the communities they serve,” Fazio said.

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The Austin Chronic: A Rundown of Cannabis Bills at the Texas Capitol

Austin Chronicle (3/7/2025) “God bless the cannabis advocacy groups, like the Texas Cannabis Policy Center, who read these filings and do education, both with the public and politicians."

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Texas Senate hearing on THC ban turns chaotic as crowds show up to testify

Chron.com (3/3/2025) "It is definitely an exciting time. Having nearly 200 people coming out to the Capitol on a Monday to testify about this," [Heather Fazio] said. "It's really incredible what's going on, this movement among the cannabis industry, but also this movement in general of those who prefer regulation over prohibition."

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Marijuana Possession Would Be Decriminalized In Texas Under Lawmaker’s New Bill

Marijuana Moment (2/26/2025) “As a former prosecutor, Speaker Pro Tem Moody knows first-hand how cannabis arrests negatively impact the court system and derail the lives of peaceful cannabis consumers,” Fazio told Marijuana Moment in an email. “Moody remains a stalwart champion of cannabis law reform,” Fazio said this week. “His House Bill 3242 would institute statewide decriminalization, freeing Texans from unreasonably harsh penalties and patchwork local policy.”

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Majority of Texans support legalizing marijuana, but Patrick remains opposed

NewsRadio 1080 KRLD (2/10/2025) Heather Fazio, with the Texas Cannabis Policy Center, said Patrick is taking aggressive steps to shut down the state’s consumable hemp industry.


"This session is going to be unique because we have a multi-billion dollar hemp industry in the state, which means there are nearly 10,000 licensed business owners who have everything to lose," she said.

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Texas Lt. Gov. Touts Poll Result Backing Hemp Crackdown While Ignoring Support For Marijuana Legalization In Same Survey

Marijuana Moment (2/06/2025) Heather Fazio, of the Texas Cannabis Policy Center, echoed those sentiments, writing in an email that “now is the time to institute better regulations, rather than sending us back to an era of prohibition.”


“There’s certainly a need for improved regulations, like age restrictions, but this multibillion-dollar industry reflects free enterprise, not exploitation,” Fazio said. She also called the survey question about banning THC “misleading” for suggesting that hemp products are entirely unregulated. “In fact, consumable products are regulated at the state and federal levels,” she said.

Read More

Texas Lt. Gov. Touts Poll Result Backing Hemp Crackdown While Ignoring Support For Marijuana Legalization In Same Survey

Houston Chronicle (2/05/2025) The discrepancy suggests some public confusion about the nature of THC, which is the primary cannabinoid in both marijuana and hemp that produces a "high," said Heather Fazio, director of [the Texas Cannabis Policy Center]. “The inconsistent polling numbers show that Texans are confused about cannabis policy, and that our laws are inconsistent and ineffective,” Fazio said. “What is clear is that Texans oppose prohibition.”

Read More

What could be in store for medical marijuana, consumable hemp products in Texas?

Fort Worth Star-Telegram (2/03/2025) "There is room to improve the state’s hemp program and regulate it," said Heather Fazio, director of [Texas Cannabis Policy Center], an advocacy group that favors regulation over a ban of consumable products.

“Which is going to be, in my opinion, much better for Texas,” Fazio said. “It’s going to be in our interest regarding public health and public safety.”

Read More

Texas THC retailers see rise in customers amid possible ban

Houston Chronicle (1/27/2025) "The sentiment of people wanting to stock up before this ban goes into effect is certainly there," said Heather Fazio, director of the Texas Cannabis Policy Center—a coalition of organizations that advocates for policy reform. "Frankly, they would rather go to that store that is licensed and regulated than have to go back to buying it from the illicit market."

Read More

LISTEN: Despite strict laws, Texas is awash in intoxicating cannabis

National Public Radio - NPR (1/13/2025)  "Don't take hemp-derived consumables away from us, something that works, something that helps," says Mitch Fuller, Chairman of the VFW National Legislative Committee and a veteran of the Iraq War. Like many veterans, he wants access to cheap, potent cannabis to treat his PTSD from combat duty. Don't take that option away from us," he continues, "and force us into the Texas compassionate use program if we don't want to use (medical) marijuana."

Read More and Listen to the Interview

VIDEO: Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick leads effort to ban THC in Texas

Spectrum News (12/12/2024)  "The initiative comes after lawmakers in 2019 passed a bipartisan bill allowing the sale of consumable hemp products in Texas, just one year after hemp was legalized nationwide through the 2018 Farm Bill.

Since then, thousands of dispensaries have sprung up across the state. According to a report from the Texas Tribune, the number of active retail registrations for consumable hemp in Texas jumped from 1,948 in 2020 to 7,700 in early 2024."

Read More and Watch Video

Texas cannabis retailers react to Dan Patrick’s push to ban THC

Houston Chronicle (12/07/2024) Heather Fazio, the director of [the Texas Cannabis Policy Center] —a coalition of organizations and activities that advocate for policy reform—said state lawmakers need to redirect their attention to further regulation, not an outright ban. 

"The bottom line is that prohibition has never worked, and this cat is not going back into the bag. We [will] hand over the industry to the illicit market, where we have no opportunity to regulate these products for consumer protection," Fazio noted. "The state is going to have to take a reasonable and more sensible approach to establishing and regulating this industry effectively."

Read More

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick vows to ban THC products, threatening dispensaries

Houston Chronicle (12/5/2024)  “While we share their concern about youth access and potentially dangerous products sailing under the radar of regulators, we oppose banning cannabis for responsible adult use,” said Heather Fazio, co-founder of [the Texas Cannabis Policy Center]. “Such a ban would hand this multi-billion dollar industry over to the illicit market, abandoning all opportunity to properly regulate the industry."

Read More

Texas Lawmaker Files Cannabis Legalization Bill

Forbes (11/13/2024)  "Heather Fazio of the group [Texas Cannabis Policy Center] said that 2025 is “likely to be a very consequential legislative session."


"Our state’s cannabis laws are complicated and ineffective,” Fazio told Marijuana Moment. “Thankfully lawmakers are taking the issue seriously and filing bills as soon as possible to get the process started.”

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Texas Lawmaker Files Cannabis Legalization Bill

POLITICO (5/09/2021) “Medical cannabis is where we see the most common ground between Democrats, Republicans and Independents,” said Heather Fazio, a pro-marijuana advocate in Texas, where lawmakers are considering a major expansion of the state’s strict medical pot program.

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VIDEO: Texas pot problem as new hemp law creates legal confusion

Fox News (9/28/2019) Heather Fazio, who has been advocating for marijuana legalization in Texas and elsewhere for years as part of the group Texans for Responsible Marijuana Policy, says she agrees with Abbott’s interpretation but is nonetheless encouraged by what she’s seeing.


“I find myself agreeing with the Governor, this doesn’t decriminalize statewide,” Fazio said, noting that the hemp bill that started it all was supported by members of both parties. 

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