Loophole Could Make Recreational Marijuana Available in Texas

Marijuana is available by prescription only in the state of Texas. In order to obtain a prescription a patient would need to visit with a qualified physician and be diagnosed with one of the qualifying ailments the medicine has been found effective in treating.

Medical marijuana dispensaries can be found in Austin, Dallas, Nacogdoches, Frisco, Forth Worth, and a host of other cities across the state. Basically they are like drug stores that only sell one medicine. And this will be the way marijuana users will get their "medicine" in Texas for the foreseeable future.

Or is it possible that based on Texas and federal law, there could already be three places in the state that could already be selling recreational marijuana to anyone who is of the legal age to buy it?

Disclaimer time, I am not a lawyer and I am not well-versed in legal statutes regarding the sale and use of marijuana. But like you, I have questions and when I see people in other states doing something that we could be doing here, I have to ask myself, why aren't we doing that? I will leave it up to smarter people to decide if we "should" be doing it.

The genesis of my question regarding a legal loophole in Texas marijuana laws comes from North Carolina. In that state, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians have added the sale of recreational cannabis to their revenue stream.  We should note that marijuana is not legal for any purpose in North Carolina. How are they able to sell an illegal substance legally? Quite simply because they can.

Back in May, the federal government reclassified marijuana from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug. That means it could become federally legal to prescribe as a medication. This change in classification opened the door for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians to begin the process of selling recreational marijuana.

You have to understand the EBCI (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians) is a "federally recognized, self-governing tribe". You would think that if a Native American Tribe in Texas was also recognized in that way they too could begin the process of offering recreational marijuana for people to purchase.

I haven't looked at the charters of Texas' Native American tribes but I bet if they operate a gaming facility on their lands, that language is in there. Are you beginning to figure out where the "three" possible places this could happen would be?

The catch in the loophole might be how the marijuana is manufactured. Based on research the product would have to be produced on tribal lands. In other words, they would have to grow, cultivate, prune, harvest, and package the product without leaving their sovereign borders. So the possibility is there. It's how they manage to circumvent state and federal gaming laws.

As of this report, we are unaware of any Native American Tribes in Texas that are contemplating acting on the possibility of providing recreational marijuana. And even if they started acting on it today it would be several years before all of the legal hurdles could be cleared and a product produced for sale to be offered.

Meanwhile, attitudes about marijuana in Texas have changed drastically over the past decade and it would not be a surprise if "recreational" isn't introduced before the state legislature in the very near future. Meanwhile, for those who choose to use marijuana, this could be a way for you to circumnavigate those pesky laws that keep interrupting your buzz.