A Texas House of Representatives legislative panel unanimously approved a bill to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana.
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This week House Bill 218, authored by Democrat Joe Moody, was approved by the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee with a unanimous vote of 9-0.
“Basically, the person is given a ticket goes to court, they’re assessed a fine, then the court tells them, ‘You’ve got six months to pay and you need to stay out of trouble during that time. If the person does their part, the court dismisses the charges, and on a request of the individual, deletes the entire record of it. The person walks away lighter in the wallet but without any criminal record whatsoever.’” Democratic state Rep. Joe Moody
The House Calendars Committee is now in charge of scheduling floor action on the bill where it will come under scrutiny.
It is worth noting the Texas House of Representatives passed similar proposals to decriminalize weed during the 2019 and 2021 legislative sessions, but neither made it past the Texas Senate.
Another marijuana bill
There is another bill being considered by Texas lawmakers this legislative session.
Last month, Rep. Jessica González, filed House Bill 1937, which would allow counties and municipalities to make their own decisions regarding the recreational use of cannabis for Texans ages 21 and older.
Under the bill, local governments could allow adults to possess and transport up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana. There would be a 10% tax on all cannabis products, with the funds to be used for cannabis regulation, cannabis testing, government oversight, and school funding.
Gonzalez filed a similar bill in 2021 but failed to get to a vote.
Most Texans support these bills.
According to recent polls, the majority of Texans would be in favor of this bill.
A Dallas Morning News-University of Texas at Tyler poll found that 60% of Texans support the legalization of marijuana for recreational use. This included 75% of Democrat voters and 42% of Republican voters.
The results show the attitude of Texans toward the drug is changing. For example, a University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll in May 2010 showed that only 27% of Texans thought marijuana should ever be legal.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott supports decriminalizing marijuana but has not supported legalizing it for recreational use.
“One thing that I believe in, and I believe the state Legislature believes in, and that is prison and jail is a place for dangerous criminals who may harm others. Small possession of marijuana is not the type of violation that we want to stockpile jails with.” Gov Abbott
Currently, recreational cannabis use is legal in 21 states, and four more states are set to pass laws this year. Will Texas join this list?
Your thoughts
Readers, what do you think? Should marijuana be legal in Texas? Do you believe these bills will pass? Or do you think small amounts should be decriminalized but still not made legal, as Abbott suggests?
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