Ken Paxton Goes After Texas Cities Over Weed Laws

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced his office is suing five cities over their marijuana policies.

The Republican’s crackdown on marijuana decriminalization in Texas comes as nearly half of the country has gone in the opposite direction, with recreational marijuana legalized in 24 states and Washington, D.C. Earlier this month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s review of the drug supported reclassification as a Schedule 3 substance rather than its current Schedule 1. The topic is also popular among voters, with a majority surveyed in a 2023 Gallup poll saying they are in favor of cannabis policy reform.

Texas has filed lawsuits against the cities of Austin, San Marcos, Killeen, Elgin and Denton “for adopting amnesty and non-prosecution policies” that violate the state’s laws on marijuana possession and distribution, Paxton said in a statement Wednesday night.

Newsweek reached out via email on Wednesday to Paxton’s office for comment.

The five cities “adopted ordinances or policies instructing police not to enforce Texas drug laws” on possession and distribution of marijuana, which the attorney general says is an illicit substance that “psychologists have increasingly linked to psychosis and other negative consequences.”

Paxton argues that the Texas Local Government Code prohibits cities from adopting policies where they do not “fully” enforce drug laws.

“I will not stand idly by as cities run by pro-crime extremists deliberately violate Texas law and promote the use of illicit drugs that harm our communities,” Paxton said in the statement. “This unconstitutional action by municipalities demonstrates why Texas must have a law to ‘follow the law.’ It’s quite simple: the legislature passes every law after a full debate on the issues, and we don’t allow cities the ability to create anarchy by picking and choosing the laws they enforce.”

This is a developing story and will be updated as further information becomes available.