MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Texas is having second thoughts about legalizing hemp products. That happened six years ago, supposedly with the aim of allowing the sale of things like rope. But what followed was a multibillion dollar market for snack foods, drinks and other products. Some lawmakers say the sales have led to abuses and health problems. Houston Public Media's Andrew Schneider has this report.
ANDREW SCHNEIDER, BYLINE: Serenity Organics sits in a strip mall in Missouri City, southwest of Houston. The shelves of the store are lined with gummies, drinks and even dog treats. Almost all of them contain a compound called tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the intoxicating components of hemp. Melannie Carpenter says most of her customers seek out her products for medicinal reasons.
MELANNIE CARPENTER: Pain, anxiety, sleep. We've got veterans with PTSD and pain injuries. I have customers with rheumatoid arthritis. I have customers with seizures, customers with tourettes.
SCHNEIDER: Last month, the state senate passed a bill that would ban nearly all consumable hemp products. Now the state house is considering its own version.
MELANNIE CARPENTER: If either of these bills would pass, I'd be forced to shut down.
SCHNEIDER: Texas still has relatively strict laws on cannabis. It has not legalized marijuana as about half the states have, except for limited medical uses. But Texas now has thousands of stores that sell hemp consumables from dispensaries like Carpenter's to smoke shops to gas stations. The industry generates billions of dollars in economic activity and more than a quarter of a billion dollars a year in sales taxes. Still, for many elected officials in Texas, all that is beside the point.
DAN PATRICK: This is a poison in our public, and we, as the legislature, our No. 1 responsibility is life and death issues.
SCHNEIDER: That's Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick. He says the products are being marketed to children and young adults, leading to a public health crisis.
PATRICK: My recommendation is if you're watching - and I know a lot of people are watching from out there who are in this business - you might want to voluntarily close your doors.
SCHNEIDER: Studies have linked the use of certain strains of THC to adverse health effects like anxiety, seizures or psychosis. At a recent hearing before a house committee, Alexandra Hess of Houston spoke in favor of the ban and opposed a version that would exempt beverages with THC. She told the story of her brother, Joshua Jimenez, who family say was struck by a train while experiencing psychosis.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
ALEXANDRA HESS: After consuming intoxicating levels of THC products, my brother suffered repeated psychotic breaks and spiraled into a mental health crisis that no one was equipped to handle. I wish Joshua was here to tell you his story firsthand. Unfortunately, he did not survive his last psychotic break.
SCHNEIDER: Opponents of the ban do say there could be more regulation. For example, there's no age requirement for purchases right now but they say hemp helps many, including veterans.
TERENCE JONES: After being injured in service, I found overwhelming pain and was prescribed heavy opioids.
SCHNEIDER: Terence Jones of Victoria, Texas, lost both his legs to an antipersonnel mine in Afghanistan.
JONES: Like too many veterans, I became dependent. In 2015, I made the decision to quit pharmaceutical drugs and begin using hemp and THC products to manage my pain and PTSD. The decision changed and saved my life.
SCHNEIDER: Jones and other opponents of a ban say it wouldn't eliminate the market that's grown up in the past six years, it would only drive it underground. For NPR News, I'm Andrew Schneider in Houston. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.