San Antonio, Texas’s second largest city, rejected by a large majority a initiative that would have decriminalized cannabis, and prevented enforcement of abortion restrictions. In Harker Heights voters narrowly reaffirmed the cannabis decriminalization measures they approved last year, but were later repealed.
Advocates are now awaiting Senate action on , a decriminalization law for the entire state that was passed by the House just last month.
San Antonio’s measure would have prevented police from arresting or issuing citations to low-level marijuana users, prohibited the enforcement of abortion laws, banned no knock warrants, and made other reforms.
In January, advocates with Ground Game Texas, , the organization which spearheaded the ballot measure , submitted more than 37,000 signed petitions in order to qualify . After a heated campaign, in which the police union urged voters to reject it, they rejected the measure by a wide margin.
The proposal stated that “the City of San Antonio will use its resources and authority in order to achieve three important goals: first, reduce the City’s contributions to mass incarceration, second, mitigate racially biased law enforcement practices, and third, save scarce public resources to meet greater public needs.”
The initiative‘s cannabis section stipulated, with some exceptions: “San Antonio Police officers shall not issue or make arrests in respect of Class A or B misdemeanor marijuana possession offenses.”
The police also stated that the smell of marijuana or hemp was not a probable reason for a search or seizure.
It continues, “No funds or staff of the City shall be used to conduct or obtain tetrahydrocannabinol testing (THC) of any cannabis-related substances to determine if the substance meets state law’s legal definition of marijuana.”
The law would also have decriminalized the possession of synthetic cannabinoids, requiring that police issue a citation or ticket, instead of arresting anyone who possessed up to four ounces.
The measure also prohibited law enforcement from criminalizing abortion in the second most populous city of the state, issuing no-knock warrants, and using chokeholds on suspects.
According to the proposal, the City would be required to appoint an “Office of Justice Director” in order to meet three policy priorities: Reduce mass incarceration; Mitigate racial disparities within law enforcement practices; and “Save scarce public resources for larger public needs.”
Harker Heights’ measure was a bit more complicated, since voters had already approved decriminalization in the ballot of last November. activists collected enough signatures to bring back the repeal of the ordinance, but the City Council repealed it shortly afterward due to concerns that the ordinance conflicted state law. The voters achieved that on Saturday — by just one vote.
Proposition A was asked “Shall an ordinance be passed repealing Chapter 133 of the Code of Ordinances of Harker Heights, ‘Marijuana Enforcement’?”
If the voters want to repeal this repeal, then they need to vote “No”. The close result of 1,135-1.134 will likely lead to a recount.
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Ground Game Texas won a number recent reform victories before Saturday’s election results.
While Harker Heights is the only city in the group to have repealed this initiative, there have been issues with advocates in other jurisdictions that have approved decriminalization.
The Killeen City Council, for example, temporarily halted the implementation of a local ordinance that was approved by voters, arguing there were some legal issues that legislators needed to address before giving their approval. They eventually did.
Local officials in Denton did not seek to repeal the cannabis law that was approved by voters, but initially contested key provisions. They argued that Denton’s city council wasn’t authorized, as they claimed, to order police to implement the policy changes. They later accepted the reform.
Elgin, San Marcos and other localities also decriminalized last year without the same problems from local governments.
Austin voters , on the other hand, strongly endorsed a marijuana decriminalization measure in May last year.
Texas’ conservative legislature has failed to pass a statewide marijuana reform despite a recent surge in local actions on the issue under home rule laws.
The Texas Senate is expected to take action on a bill that was passed by the Texas House last month to decriminalize all marijuana in the state.
The House has already passed similar cannabis decriminalization bills in the two previous legislative sessions. These were 2021 and 2019. The has been a constant stumbling block in the Senate due to the opposition of Lt. Governor. Dan Patrick (R), the Republican who preside over the chamber, is also a member.
Last month, the House also passed a bill to allow medical marijuana to be used as an alternative to opioids by people suffering from chronic pain, and to replace the THC limit set by the state. The legislation was then sent to the Senate to be considered.
According to a University of Texas/Texas Politics Project survey conducted in December, nearly 3 out of 4 Texas voters (72%) support decriminalizing cannabis. Over half (55%) of respondents said they support a broader legalization. Seventeen percent of respondents said that it should not be legalized at all.
The same institution conducted a more recent poll that showed that the majority of Texas voters felt that state marijuana laws should “be less strict.”
Texas legislators also filed a number of new bills recently aimed at expanding and promoting psychedelics in the state.
A key Senate committee chairman says Marijuana Banking Bill hearing could be held next week
Photo by Philip Steffan.
Texas Marijuana Decriminalization Measures See Mixed Results in San Antonio and Harker Heights first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
