87R2233 JSC-F
By: Menéndez S.B. No. 90
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to authorizing the possession, use, cultivation,
distribution, transportation, and delivery of medical cannabis for
medical use by qualifying patients with certain debilitating
medical conditions and the licensing of dispensing organizations
and testing facilities; authorizing fees.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
ARTICLE 1. AMENDMENTS TO CHAPTER 487, HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE
SECTION 1.01. Section 487.001, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 487.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Cannabis testing facility" means an independent
entity licensed by the department under this chapter to analyze the
safety and potency of medical cannabis.
(2) "Cardholder" means a qualifying patient or a
registered caregiver who is issued a registry identification card.
(3) "Debilitating medical condition," "medical
cannabis," "medical practitioner," "medical use," and "qualifying
patient" have the meanings assigned by Section 169.001, Occupations
Code.
(4) "Department" means the Department of Public
Safety.
(5) [(2)] "Director" means the public safety director
of the department.
(6) [(3)] "Dispensing organization" means an
organization licensed by the department to cultivate, process, and
dispense medical [low-THC] cannabis to a patient for whom medical
use [low-THC cannabis] is recommended [prescribed] under Chapter
169, Occupations Code.
(7) "Drug paraphernalia" has the meaning assigned by
Section 481.002.
(8) "Nonresident cardholder" means a person who is not
a resident of this state and who:
(A) has been diagnosed with a debilitating
medical condition and issued a currently valid registry
identification card or the equivalent under the laws of another
state, district, territory, commonwealth, insular possession of
the United States, or country recognized by the United States, that
authorizes medical use by the person in the jurisdiction of
issuance; or
(B) is the parent, legal guardian, or conservator
of a person described by Paragraph (A).
(9) "Registered caregiver" means a person who:
(A) is at least 21 years of age or a parent, legal
guardian, or conservator of a qualifying patient;
(B) has significant responsibility for managing
the medical care of a qualifying patient listed on the
compassionate-use registry; and
(C) has been issued a registry identification
card identifying the person as a registered caregiver of a
qualifying patient listed on the compassionate-use registry.
(10) "Registry identification card" means a document
issued by the department that identifies a person as:
(A) a qualifying patient listed on the
compassionate-use registry; or
(B) a registered caregiver of a qualifying
patient listed on the compassionate-use registry.
(11) "Written certification" means a document
produced under Section 169.002, Occupations Code.
[(4) "Low-THC cannabis" has the meaning assigned by
Section 169.001, Occupations Code.]
SECTION 1.02. Chapter 487, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subchapter A-1 to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER A-1. PROTECTIONS RELATED TO MEDICAL USE OF CANNABIS
Sec. 487.021. PROTECTION FROM LEGAL ACTION. (a) This
section applies to a person who is:
(1) a cardholder;
(2) a nonresident cardholder;
(3) a dispensing organization;
(4) a cannabis testing facility; or
(5) a director, manager, or employee of a dispensing
organization or of a cannabis testing facility who is registered
with the department under Section 487.053.
(b) Notwithstanding any other law, a person described by
Subsection (a) is not subject to arrest, prosecution, or penalty in
any manner, or denial of any right or privilege, including any civil
penalty or disciplinary action by a court or occupational or
professional licensing board or bureau, for conduct involving
medical use that is authorized under this chapter, department rule,
or Chapter 169, Occupations Code.
Sec. 487.022. NO PRESUMPTION OF CHILD ABUSE, NEGLECT, OR
ENDANGERMENT. A person described by Section 487.021(a) may not be
presumed to have engaged in conduct constituting child abuse,
neglect, or endangerment solely because the person engaged in
conduct involving medical use that is authorized under this
chapter, department rule, or Chapter 169, Occupations Code.
Sec. 487.023. NO DENIAL OF PARENTAL RIGHTS. The fact that a
person described by Section 487.021(a) engages in conduct
authorized under this chapter, department rule, or Chapter 169,
Occupations Code, does not in itself constitute grounds for
denying, limiting, or restricting conservatorship or possession of
or access to a child under Title 5, Family Code.
Sec. 487.024. NO SEIZURE OR FORFEITURE. Property used in
the cultivation, distribution, transportation, and delivery of
medical cannabis for medical use that is authorized under this
chapter, department rule, or Chapter 169, Occupations Code, is not
contraband for purposes of Chapter 59, Code of Criminal Procedure,
and is not subject to seizure or forfeiture under that chapter or
other law solely for the use of the property in those authorized
activities.
Sec. 487.025. NO PROSECUTION FOR PROVISION OF
PARAPHERNALIA. A person is not subject to arrest, prosecution, or
the imposition of any sentence or penalty for the delivery,
possession with intent to deliver, or manufacture of any item that
meets the definition of drug paraphernalia, if that item is
delivered, possessed with intent to deliver, or manufactured for
the sole purpose of providing that item to a cardholder or
nonresident cardholder for medical use under this chapter,
department rule, or Chapter 169, Occupations Code.
SECTION 1.03. Section 487.052, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 487.052. RULES. (a) The director shall adopt any
rules necessary for the administration and enforcement of this
chapter.
(b) The director shall adopt reasonable [, including] rules
imposing fees under this chapter in amounts sufficient to cover the
cost of administering this chapter. Fees collected under a rule
adopted under this chapter may be used only for the administration
of this chapter.
(c) The director shall adopt rules in accordance with
Section 487.081 governing the allowable amount of medical cannabis
a cardholder or nonresident cardholder may possess for medical use
by a qualifying patient.
(d) The director by rule shall adopt labeling requirements
for medical cannabis.
(e) The director shall adopt rules establishing security
requirements concerning the cultivation of medical cannabis by a
cardholder.
(f) The director shall adopt reasonable rules governing
access to medical cannabis by nonresident cardholders.
SECTION 1.04. The heading to Section 487.053, Health and
Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 487.053. LICENSING OF DISPENSING ORGANIZATIONS AND
CANNABIS TESTING FACILITIES; REGISTRATION OF CERTAIN ASSOCIATED
INDIVIDUALS.
SECTION 1.05. Section 487.053(a), Health and Safety Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) The department shall:
(1) issue or renew a license to operate as:
(A) a dispensing organization to each applicant
who satisfies the requirements established under this chapter for
licensure as a dispensing organization; and
(B) a cannabis testing facility to each applicant
who satisfies the requirements established under this chapter for
licensure as a cannabis testing facility; and
(2) register directors, managers, and employees of
each:
(A) dispensing organization; and
(B) cannabis testing facility.
SECTION 1.06. Section 487.054, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 487.054. COMPASSIONATE-USE REGISTRY. (a) The
department shall establish and maintain a secure online
compassionate-use registry that contains:
(1) the name of each individual who is issued a
registry identification card and each nonresident cardholder who
receives medical cannabis from a dispensing organization;
(2) the name of each medical practitioner who
recommends medical use to a qualifying patient and [physician who
registers as the prescriber for a patient under Section 169.004,
Occupations Code,] the name and date of birth of that [the]
patient[, the dosage prescribed, the means of administration
ordered, and the total amount of low-THC cannabis required to fill
the patient's prescription]; and
(3) [(2)] a record of each amount of medical [low-THC]
cannabis dispensed by a dispensing organization to a cardholder or
nonresident cardholder [patient under a prescription].
(b) The department shall ensure the registry:
(1) is designed to prevent more than one medical
practitioner [qualified physician] from registering as the
recommending medical practitioner [prescriber] for a single
patient; and
(2) is accessible to law enforcement agencies and
dispensing organizations for the purpose of verifying whether a
person is authorized under this chapter to receive medical cannabis
[patient is one for whom low-THC cannabis is prescribed and whether
the patient's prescriptions have been filled; and
[(3) allows a physician qualified to prescribe low-THC
cannabis under Section 169.002, Occupations Code, to input safety
and efficacy data derived from the treatment of patients for whom
low-THC cannabis is prescribed under Chapter 169, Occupations
Code].
SECTION 1.07. Subchapter B, Chapter 487, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Sections 487.055 and 487.056 to read as
follows:
Sec. 487.055. LICENSING AND REGULATION OF CANNABIS TESTING
FACILITIES. The director shall adopt all rules necessary for:
(1) the licensing and regulation of cannabis testing
facilities and the directors, managers, and employees of those
facilities;
(2) the operation of cannabis testing facilities; and
(3) the testing of the safety and potency of medical
cannabis.
Sec. 487.056. APPLICATION FOR REGISTRY IDENTIFICATION
CARD. (a) The director by rule shall adopt an application for a
registry identification card:
(1) for a qualifying patient; and
(2) for a designated caregiver.
(b) An applicant for a registry identification card must
submit to the department:
(1) the application adopted under Subsection (a);
(2) a written certification that was issued within the
90 days preceding the date of application and that affirms that
medical use is recommended for the qualifying patient;
(3) the application fee prescribed by department rule;
and
(4) any other forms developed by the director for
submission with the application.
(c) The department shall issue a registry identification
card to an applicant who is a qualifying patient or the registered
caregiver of a qualifying patient not later than the 25th day after
the date the application is submitted.
SECTION 1.08. Chapter 487, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subchapter B-1 to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER B-1. ALLOWABLE AMOUNT OF MEDICAL CANNABIS AND ACCESS TO
MEDICAL CANNABIS
Sec. 487.081. ALLOWABLE AMOUNT OF MEDICAL CANNABIS. (a) A
cardholder or nonresident cardholder may possess for medical use by
the qualifying patient no more than the allowable amount of medical
cannabis for that qualifying patient, as provided by this section
and department rule.
(b) The director by rule shall specify the number of
cannabis plants that may be cultivated or possessed for medical use
by a qualifying patient, which may not be fewer than six cannabis
plants. The amount of medical cannabis, edible products that
contain medical cannabis, or products infused with medical cannabis
that are produced from the allowable number of cannabis plants may
be possessed for medical use by a cardholder or nonresident
cardholder on the site where those plants are cultivated,
regardless of whether the amount possessed on that site exceeds the
quantity otherwise provided as the allowable amount of medical
cannabis for the qualifying patient by a rule adopted under this
section.
(c) The director by rule shall specify the quantity of
medical cannabis other than cannabis plants, edible products that
contain medical cannabis, or products infused with medical
cannabis, that, except as otherwise provided by Subsection (b) or
(e), may be possessed by a cardholder or nonresident cardholder for
medical use by a qualifying patient, which may not be less than 2.5
ounces.
(d) The director by rule shall specify the quantity of
edible products that contain medical cannabis or products infused
with medical cannabis that, except as otherwise provided by
Subsection (b) or (e), may be possessed by a cardholder or
nonresident cardholder for medical use by a qualifying patient.
(e) If a medical practitioner recommends in the qualifying
patient's written certification a different amount of medical
cannabis than the amount provided by rule adopted under this
section, the amount recommended by the written certification is the
allowable amount of medical cannabis for that qualifying patient.
Sec. 487.082. ACCESS TO MEDICAL CANNABIS BEFORE REGISTRY
IDENTIFICATION CARD ISSUED. An applicant for a registry
identification card may receive medical cannabis from a dispensing
organization before the department issues a registry
identification card on providing:
(1) proof that the application was submitted to the
department and any application fees were paid; and
(2) a copy of the applicant's written certification.
Sec. 487.083. ACCESS TO MEDICAL CANNABIS BEFORE DECEMBER 1,
2021. (a) On or before December 1, 2021, notwithstanding a
contrary provision of this chapter, a qualifying patient or a
caregiver with significant responsibility for managing the
well-being of a qualifying patient may obtain medical cannabis from
a dispensing organization on providing:
(1) for a qualifying patient, a copy of the qualifying
patient's written certification; or
(2) for a caregiver of the qualifying patient:
(A) a copy of the qualifying patient's written
certification; and
(B) an affidavit stating:
(i) that the caregiver is the qualifying
patient's parent or guardian; or
(ii) that the caregiver has significant
responsibility for managing the well-being of the qualifying
patient and that is signed by the qualifying patient or the
qualifying patient's parent or guardian, if the qualifying patient
is a minor.
(b) This section expires December 1, 2021.
SECTION 1.09. Section 487.102, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 487.102. ELIGIBILITY FOR LICENSE. An applicant for a
license to operate as a dispensing organization is eligible for the
license if:
(1) as determined by the department, the applicant
possesses:
(A) the technical and technological ability to
cultivate and produce medical [low-THC] cannabis;
(B) the ability to secure:
(i) the resources and personnel necessary
to operate as a dispensing organization; and
(ii) premises reasonably located to allow
patients listed on the compassionate-use registry access to the
organization through existing infrastructure;
(C) the ability to maintain accountability for
the raw materials, the finished product, and any by-products used
or produced in the cultivation or production of medical [low-THC]
cannabis to prevent unlawful access to or unlawful diversion or
possession of those materials, products, or by-products; and
(D) the financial ability to maintain operations
for not less than two years from the date of application;
(2) each director, manager, or employee of the
applicant is registered under Subchapter D; and
(3) the applicant satisfies any additional criteria
determined by the director to be necessary to safely implement this
chapter.
SECTION 1.10. Subchapter C, Chapter 487, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 487.1025 to read as follows:
Sec. 487.1025. ANNUAL LICENSE FEE. The director shall
charge an annual license fee set initially by the director in an
amount not to exceed $5,000. The director shall annually adjust for
inflation the annual license fee.
SECTION 1.11. Section 487.103, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
(a-1) The director shall set the application fee charged
under Subsection (a) initially in an amount not to exceed $2,500.
The director shall annually adjust for inflation the application
fee.
SECTION 1.12. Section 487.104(a), Health and Safety Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) The department shall issue or renew a license to operate
as a dispensing organization only if:
(1) the department determines the applicant meets the
eligibility requirements described by Section 487.102; and
(2) issuance or renewal of the license is necessary to
ensure reasonable statewide access to, and the availability of,
medical [low-THC] cannabis for patients registered in the
compassionate-use registry and for whom medical [low-THC] cannabis
is recommended [prescribed] under Chapter 169, Occupations Code.
SECTION 1.13. Section 487.107, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 487.107. DUTIES RELATING TO DISPENSING MEDICAL
CANNABIS [PRESCRIPTION]. (a) Before dispensing medical [low-THC]
cannabis to a person authorized under this chapter to receive
medical [for whom the low-THC] cannabis [is prescribed under
Chapter 169, Occupations Code], the dispensing organization must
verify that [the prescription presented]:
(1) the person receiving the medical cannabis is [for]
a cardholder [person] listed [as a patient] in the
compassionate-use registry or a nonresident cardholder;
(2) the medical cannabis, including any edible
products that contain medical cannabis and any products infused
with medical cannabis, has been properly tested and properly
labeled in accordance with standards established by the department
[matches the entry in the compassionate-use registry with respect
to the total amount of low-THC cannabis required to fill the
prescription]; and
(3) the amount of medical cannabis dispensed to the
person would not cause the person to possess more than the allowable
amount of medical cannabis for the qualifying patient, as
determined under Section 487.081 [has not previously been filled by
a dispensing organization as indicated by an entry in the
compassionate-use registry].
(b) After dispensing medical [low-THC] cannabis to a
cardholder or nonresident cardholder [patient for whom the low-THC
cannabis is prescribed under Chapter 169, Occupations Code], the
dispensing organization shall record in the compassionate-use
registry the name and address of the individual to whom the medical
cannabis is dispensed, the form and quantity of medical [low-THC]
cannabis dispensed, and the date and time of dispensation.
SECTION 1.14. Section 487.108(c), Health and Safety Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(c) After suspending or revoking a license issued under this
chapter, the director may seize or place under seal all medical
[low-THC] cannabis and drug paraphernalia owned or possessed by the
dispensing organization. If the director orders the revocation of
the license, a disposition may not be made of the seized or sealed
medical [low-THC] cannabis or drug paraphernalia until the time for
administrative appeal of the order has elapsed or until all appeals
have been concluded. When a revocation order becomes final, all
medical [low-THC] cannabis and drug paraphernalia may be forfeited
to the state as provided under Subchapter E, Chapter 481.
SECTION 1.15. Section 487.151, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
(a-1) An individual who is a director, manager, or employee
of a cannabis testing facility must apply for and obtain a
registration under this section.
SECTION 1.16. Section 487.201, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 487.201. COUNTIES AND MUNICIPALITIES MAY NOT PROHIBIT
MEDICAL [LOW-THC] CANNABIS. A municipality, county, or other
political subdivision may not enact, adopt, or enforce a rule,
ordinance, order, resolution, or other regulation that prohibits
the cultivation, production, dispensing, or possession of medical
[low-THC] cannabis, as authorized by this chapter.
ARTICLE 2. AMENDMENTS TO CHAPTER 169, OCCUPATIONS CODE
SECTION 2.01. The heading to Chapter 169, Occupations Code,
is amended to read as follows:
CHAPTER 169. AUTHORITY TO RECOMMEND MEDICAL [PRESCRIBE LOW-THC]
CANNABIS TO CERTAIN PATIENTS FOR COMPASSIONATE USE
SECTION 2.02. Sections 169.001, 169.0011, 169.002, and
169.004, Occupations Code, are amended to read as follows:
Sec. 169.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Debilitating medical condition" means:
(A) cancer, glaucoma, positive status for human
immunodeficiency virus, acquired immune deficiency syndrome,
hepatitis C, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Crohn's disease,
ulcerative colitis, agitation of Alzheimer's disease,
post-traumatic stress disorder, autism, sickle cell anemia, severe
fibromyalgia, spinal cord disease, spinal cord injury, traumatic
brain injury or post-concussion syndrome, chronic traumatic
encephalopathy, Parkinson's disease, muscular dystrophy,
Huntington's disease, or an incurable neurodegenerative disease;
(B) a chronic medical condition that produces, or
the treatment of a chronic medical condition that produces:
(i) cachexia or wasting syndrome;
(ii) severe pain;
(iii) severe nausea;
(iv) seizures, including those
characteristic of epilepsy; or
(v) spasticity or severe and persistent
muscle spasms, including those characteristic of multiple
sclerosis; or
(C) any other medical condition approved as a
debilitating medical condition by department rule or any symptom
caused by the treatment of a medical condition that is approved as a
debilitating medical condition by department rule.
(2) "Department" means the Department of Public
Safety.
(3) [(1-a)] "Incurable neurodegenerative disease"
means a disease designated as an incurable neurodegenerative
disease by rule of the executive commissioner of the Health and
Human Services Commission, adopted in consultation with the
National Institutes of Health.
(4) [(3)] "Medical ["Low-THC] cannabis" means the
plant Cannabis sativa L., and any part of that plant or any
compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, preparation,
resin, or oil of that plant [that contains not more than 0.5 percent
by weight of tetrahydrocannabinols].
(5) "Medical practitioner" means:
(A) a licensed physician;
(B) an advanced practice registered nurse who has
been delegated prescriptive authority in accordance with
Subchapter B, Chapter 157; or
(C) a physician assistant who has been delegated
prescriptive authority in accordance with Subchapter B, Chapter
157.
(6) [(4)] "Medical use" means the ingestion of medical
[by a means of administration other than by smoking of a prescribed
amount of low-THC] cannabis by a qualifying patient to treat or
alleviate the patient's debilitating medical condition [person for
whom low-THC cannabis is prescribed under this chapter].
(7) "Qualifying patient" means a person who has been
diagnosed with a debilitating medical condition by a medical
practitioner.
[(5) "Smoking" means burning or igniting a substance
and inhaling the smoke.
[(6) "Terminal cancer" means cancer that meets the
criteria for a terminal illness, as defined by Section 1003.051,
Health and Safety Code.]
Sec. 169.0011. PRESCRIPTION FOR MEDICAL USE. A reference
in [this chapter, Chapter 487, Health and Safety Code, or other] law
to a prescription for medical use or a prescription for medical
[low-THC] cannabis means an entry in the compassionate-use registry
established under Section 487.054, Health and Safety Code.
Sec. 169.002. RECOMMENDATION FOR MEDICAL [PHYSICIAN
QUALIFIED TO PRESCRIBE LOW-THC] CANNABIS BY MEDICAL PRACTITIONER
[TO PATIENTS WITH CERTAIN MEDICAL CONDITIONS]. (a) A medical
practitioner may recommend medical cannabis to a qualifying patient
if the medical practitioner attests through written certification
that, in the medical practitioner's professional opinion:
(1) the diagnosis of a debilitating medical condition
for the qualifying patient is correct;
(2) the qualifying patient is likely to receive
therapeutic or palliative benefit from the medical use of medical
cannabis to treat or alleviate the patient's debilitating medical
condition; and
(3) the potential benefits to the qualifying patient
of medical use outweigh the health risks of medical use.
(b) The written certification described by Subsection (a)
must:
(1) be dated and signed by the medical practitioner;
(2) specify the qualifying patient's debilitating
medical condition; and
(3) affirm that medical use was recommended in the
course of a bona fide practitioner-patient relationship between the
qualifying patient and the medical practitioner [Only a physician
qualified with respect to a patient's particular medical condition
as provided by this section may prescribe low-THC cannabis in
accordance with this chapter to treat the applicable medical
condition.
[(b) A physician is qualified to prescribe low-THC cannabis
with respect to a patient's particular medical condition if the
physician:
[(1) is licensed under this subtitle;
[(2) is board certified in a medical specialty relevant
to the treatment of the patient's particular medical condition by a
specialty board approved by the American Board of Medical
Specialties or the Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists; and
[(3) dedicates a significant portion of clinical
practice to the evaluation and treatment of the patient's
particular medical condition].
Sec. 169.004. [LOW-THC CANNABIS PRESCRIBER] REGISTRATION
OF RECOMMENDING MEDICAL PRACTITIONERS. (a) Before a medical
practitioner [physician qualified to prescribe low-THC cannabis
under Section 169.002] may recommend medical use [prescribe or
renew a prescription for low-THC cannabis] for a qualifying patient
under this chapter, the practitioner [physician] must register as
the recommending medical practitioner [prescriber] for that
patient in the compassionate-use registry maintained by the
department under Section 487.054, Health and Safety Code. The
medical practitioner's [physician's] registration must indicate:
(1) the medical practitioner's [physician's] name; and
(2) the qualifying patient's name and date of birth[;
[(3) the dosage prescribed to the patient;
[(4) the means of administration ordered for the
patient; and
[(5) the total amount of low-THC cannabis required to
fill the patient's prescription].
(b) The department may not publish the name of a medical
practitioner [physician] registered under this section unless
permission is expressly granted by the medical practitioner
[physician].
SECTION 2.03. Sections 169.003 and 169.005, Occupations
Code, are repealed.
ARTICLE 3. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS
SECTION 3.01. Section 161.001(c), Family Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(c) A court may not make a finding under Subsection (b) and
order termination of the parent-child relationship based on
evidence that the parent:
(1) homeschooled the child;
(2) is economically disadvantaged;
(3) has been charged with a nonviolent misdemeanor
offense other than:
(A) an offense under Title 5, Penal Code;
(B) an offense under Title 6, Penal Code; or
(C) an offense that involves family violence, as
defined by Section 71.004 of this code;
(4) provided or administered medical [low-THC]
cannabis to a child for whom the medical [low-THC] cannabis was
recommended [prescribed] under Chapter 169, Occupations Code; or
(5) declined immunization for the child for reasons of
conscience, including a religious belief.
SECTION 3.02. Section 262.116(a), Family Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) The Department of Family and Protective Services may not
take possession of a child under this subchapter based on evidence
that the parent:
(1) homeschooled the child;
(2) is economically disadvantaged;
(3) has been charged with a nonviolent misdemeanor
offense other than:
(A) an offense under Title 5, Penal Code;
(B) an offense under Title 6, Penal Code; or
(C) an offense that involves family violence, as
defined by Section 71.004 of this code;
(4) provided or administered medical [low-THC]
cannabis to a child for whom the medical [low-THC] cannabis was
recommended [prescribed] under Chapter 169, Occupations Code; or
(5) declined immunization for the child for reasons of
conscience, including a religious belief.
SECTION 3.03. Section 443.202(a), Health and Safety Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) This section does not apply to medical [low-THC]
cannabis regulated under Chapter 487.
SECTION 3.04. Section 443.2025(a), Health and Safety Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) This section does not apply to medical [low-THC]
cannabis regulated under Chapter 487.
SECTION 3.05. Section 481.062(a), Health and Safety Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) The following persons may possess a controlled
substance under this chapter without registering with the Federal
Drug Enforcement Administration:
(1) an agent or employee of a manufacturer,
distributor, analyzer, or dispenser of the controlled substance who
is registered with the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration and
acting in the usual course of business or employment;
(2) a common or contract carrier, a warehouseman, or
an employee of a carrier or warehouseman whose possession of the
controlled substance is in the usual course of business or
employment;
(3) an ultimate user or a person in possession of the
controlled substance under a lawful order of a practitioner or in
lawful possession of the controlled substance if it is listed in
Schedule V;
(4) an officer or employee of this state, another
state, a political subdivision of this state or another state, or
the United States who is lawfully engaged in the enforcement of a
law relating to a controlled substance or drug or to a customs law
and authorized to possess the controlled substance in the discharge
of the person's official duties;
(5) if the substance is tetrahydrocannabinol or one of
its derivatives:
(A) a Health and Human Services Commission
[Department of State Health Services] official, a medical school
researcher, or a research program participant possessing the
substance as authorized under Subchapter G; or
(B) a practitioner or an ultimate user possessing
the substance as a participant in a federally approved therapeutic
research program that the commissioner has reviewed and found, in
writing, to contain a medically responsible research protocol; or
(6) a person possessing medical cannabis, as defined
by Section 169.001, Occupations Code, who is authorized to possess
medical cannabis [dispensing organization licensed] under Chapter
487 [that possesses low-THC cannabis].
SECTION 3.06. Sections 481.111(e) and (f), Health and
Safety Code, are amended to read as follows:
(e) Sections 481.120, 481.121, 481.122, and 481.125 do not
apply to a person who engages in the acquisition, possession,
production, cultivation, delivery, or disposal of a raw material
used in or by-product created by the production or cultivation of
medical [low-THC] cannabis if the person:
(1) for an offense involving possession only of
marihuana or drug paraphernalia, is a cardholder or nonresident
cardholder authorized under Chapter 487 to possess medical cannabis
for medical use by a qualifying patient [for whom low-THC cannabis
is prescribed under Chapter 169, Occupations Code, or the patient's
legal guardian,] and the person possesses no more than the
allowable amount of medical [low-THC] cannabis, as determined under
Section 487.081 [obtained under a valid prescription from a
dispensing organization]; or
(2) is a director, manager, or employee of a
dispensing organization or cannabis testing facility and the
person, solely in performing the person's regular duties at the
organization or facility, acquires, possesses, produces,
cultivates, dispenses, or disposes of:
(A) in reasonable quantities, any medical
[low-THC] cannabis or raw materials used in or by-products created
by the production or cultivation of medical [low-THC] cannabis; or
(B) any drug paraphernalia used in the
acquisition, possession, production, cultivation, delivery, or
disposal of medical [low-THC] cannabis.
(f) For purposes of Subsection (e):
(1) "Cannabis testing facility," "cardholder,"
"dispensing organization," and "nonresident cardholder" have the
meanings ["Dispensing organization" has the meaning] assigned by
Section 487.001.
(2) "Medical cannabis," "medical use," and
"qualifying patient" have the meanings ["Low-THC cannabis" has the
meaning] assigned by Section 169.001, Occupations Code.
SECTION 3.07. Section 551.004, Occupations Code, is amended
by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as
follows:
(a) This subtitle does not apply to:
(1) a practitioner licensed by the appropriate state
board who supplies a patient of the practitioner with a drug in a
manner authorized by state or federal law and who does not operate a
pharmacy for the retailing of prescription drugs;
(2) a member of the faculty of a college of pharmacy
recognized by the board who is a pharmacist and who performs the
pharmacist's services only for the benefit of the college;
(3) a person who procures prescription drugs for
lawful research, teaching, or testing and not for resale;
(4) a home and community support services agency that
possesses a dangerous drug as authorized by Section 142.0061,
142.0062, or 142.0063, Health and Safety Code; or
(5) a dispensing organization[, as defined by Section
487.001, Health and Safety Code,] that cultivates, processes, and
dispenses medical [low-THC] cannabis, as authorized by Chapter 487,
Health and Safety Code, to a cardholder or nonresident cardholder
[patient listed in the compassionate-use registry established
under that chapter].
(a-1) For purposes of Subsection (a)(5), "cardholder,"
"dispensing organization," and "nonresident cardholder" have the
meanings assigned by Section 487.001, Health and Safety Code.
ARTICLE 4. TRANSITION PROVISIONS; EFFECTIVE DATE
SECTION 4.01. Not later than October 1, 2021, the public
safety director of the Department of Public Safety shall adopt
rules as required to implement, administer, and enforce Chapter
487, Health and Safety Code, as amended by this Act, including rules
relating to adopting an application for a registry identification
card, as required by Section 487.056, Health and Safety Code, as
added by this Act.
SECTION 4.02. (a) A license to operate as a dispensing
organization issued under Chapter 487, Health and Safety Code,
before the effective date of this Act continues to be valid after
the effective date of this Act until that license expires.
(b) The registration of a director, manager, or employee of
a dispensing organization under Subchapter D, Chapter 487, Health
and Safety Code, continues to be valid after the effective date of
this Act until that registration expires.
(c) As soon as practicable after the effective date of this
Act, the Department of Public Safety shall issue compassionate-use
registry cards to all individuals listed on that registry on the
effective date of this Act.
SECTION 4.03. This Act takes effect immediately if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2021.