Patrick Says SB 3 Veto Sends Message
Abbott Wants to Make Marijuana Legal

Capitol Inside
June 23, 2025

An epic standoff could be in the making in Austin where Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick contended on Monday that Governor Greg Abbott's decision to veto a bill banning THC products shows that he wants to legalize marijuana for recreational use in Texas.

Normally an ally, the Texas Senate leader drew a line in the sand at a press conference in the Capitol where he vowed to block a regulatory plan that Abbott has ordered lawmakers to tackle in a special session that gets under way on July 21. Patrick said he would work with the governor on THC in the summer session but envisioned no potential middle ground on the subject when the Legislature is back at the statehouse in Austin again next month.

Patrick said the governor's explanation for the veto of Senate Bill 3 made no sense and relied on legal information that was badly flawed. Abbott argued in the veto proclamation that SB 3 would never survive a court challenge as a blatant preemption of the federal law governing hemp.

The lieutenant governor said Abbott had indicated that the legislation had no problems before he vetoed it shortly before midnight on Sunday without the courtesy of a warning in advance on its fate. Patrick said he was stunned last night when the bill died as a victim of the veto pen.

Patrick said the governor had ignored the will of 105 Republicans who voted for the ban in SB 3 in the Senate and the House. Patrick said the measure had strong support from doctors, pediatric groups and almost every police agency in the state. Patrick said the medical marijuana program that the Legislature voted to expand would be worthless in a state with 8,000 to 9,000 businesses selling products made from hemp.

Patrick said the governor had switched his positions on casino gambling and sports betting in recent years. The Senate boss said Abbott had done the same on marijuana with the veto that buried SB 3. Patrick said the inherent message in the veto was that Abbott wants to make recreational marijuana legal like it is in states like Colorado, Oregon and Washington. Patrick said he didn't want to go to Colorado any more because it reeks of marijuana anywhere you go there now.

Patrick said California Governor Gavin Newsom had banned THC in his state. Newsom, a Democrat, actually backed a ban on THC products manufactured from hemp. Cannabis has been legal for recreational use in California for almost 10 years.

At the same time Patrick said he would not go along with a regulatory framework that Abbott has requested, he said the status quo would not be acceptable. Patrick didn't say how he might react if the only realistic choices were regulation versus the status quo.

more to come ...

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

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