AUSTIN, Texas — Sid Miller, the agriculture commissioner of Texas, appears to disagree with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on the future of THC in the Lone Star State.
On Wednesday, Patrick announced a legislative initiative to ban all consumable THC in Texas. As things stand right now, Texas allows the sale of consumable hemp products that do not exceed 0.3% delta-9 THC. The state also has a Compassionate Use Program that allows qualified physicians to prescribe low-THC cannabis to patients with specific medical conditions.
Following his initial announcement, Patrick clarified that Senate Bill 3 – the bill in the upcoming legislative session that will aim to ban consumable THC – will not affect the state's Compassionate Use Program.
Now Miller is sharing his own thoughts about Patrick's potential THC ban.
An X user asked Miller, "Why is the Texas government trying to outlaw THC? Isn't it medicine for some folks?"
"Not everyone is on the same page on this," Miller replied. "The GOP needs to find some consensus instead of constantly running in opposite directions. We know what the polls say. It's time to support the will of Texans."
Back in May, the most recent Texas Lyceum Poll showed that 60% of Texans surveyed supported marijuana legalization. And while 31% didn't support legalization, nearly half said they would support decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana to a citation or fine.
Miller himself has not supported recreational marijuana legalization in the past, but he has supported the expansion of medical marijuana use in Texas.
In July 2022, Miller penned an editorial expressing his support for expanding the state's Compassionate Use Program. Shortly after, in an interview with Inside Texas Politics, he doubled-down on his thoughts.
"If it'll help a toothache, I'm for it – anything that will relieve pain or suffering from somebody," Miller said. "And we've seen this, how it helps PTSD, cancer patients, etc. But we just need to open it up to everybody and quit picking winners and losers."
In the same interview, Miller said he was not advocating for recreational use of cannabis, but that he wants any Texan with a medical need to be able to access what he considers to be medicine.
"This is about freedom. It's about less regulation. It's about less government. It's about freedom between you and your doctor and getting government out of your life," Miller said. "So, I think it's a conservative issue."
