Texas’s Hemp Industry Loses Another Round in Court — For Now
Texas’s $5 billion hemp industry suffered its latest legal setback this week when a Travis County District Court judge denied a request for a temporary restraining order on enforcement of new rules regarding hemp-derived products, allowing the state’s crackdown on delta-8 THC products to continue.
The ruling means businesses selling delta-8 and similar products remain under the state’s tightened restrictions while a broader legal challenge plays out.
The case is the newest chapter in a months-long tug-of-war between hemp retailers and the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS).
The companies suing argued the state’s ban on hemp products containing more than “trace” amounts of delta-8 has created chaos in the market, but the judge found the restraining order wasn’t justified and would only have applied to the specific companies involved. The dispute traces back to late March, when the state began enforcing new rules that changed how delta-9 THC is measured in hemp products, sidelining many items from shelves, and separately classified concentrated, manufactured delta-8 THC as a Schedule I controlled substance.
This back-and-forth has played out repeatedly in 2026.
In May, a Travis County judge granted hemp businesses a temporary injunction blocking DSHS from counting THCA toward THC limits, even as the Texas Supreme Court simultaneously upheld the state’s authority to classify delta-8 as a controlled substance. That injunction was later overturned on appeal in June, letting the stricter rules — including steep new licensing fees and limits on smokable products — take effect again, though enforcement remained inconsistent. A separate federal court bid to block the state’s THC rules also failed in August.
Now attention turns to October 30, when a Travis County judge is scheduled to hear the industry’s request for a longer-term temporary injunction. Until then, DSHS’s current enforcement posture stands, leaving Texas’s roughly 14,000 licensed hemp retailers operating under continued legal uncertainty.
For an industry this large, every ruling — win or loss — reshapes what can legally stay on shelves, at least until the next hearing.
Sources:
- Texas judge lets hemp enforcement continue as delta-8 lawsuit proceeds — Yahoo News/Austin American-Statesman
- Texas Judge Denies Temporary Restraining Order in Hemp Industry Lawsuit, Injunction Hearing Set for October 30 — The Marijuana Herald
- Texas hemp industry wins temporary injunction — KUT
- Texas rule targeting smokable hemp is back in effect, but enforcement is unclear — Houston Public Media/KUT
- Texas THC ban continues as federal judge denies emergency motion — The Texas Tribune
The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office Deputies are investigating after finding a person dead in a Williamson County neighborhood Monday morning.
The city of Bastrop will be taking up the issue today.
A list of Central Texas departments still using Flock:
- Hutto Police Department
- Bastrop County Sheriff’s Office
- Taylor Police Department
- Kyle Police Department
- Buda Police Department
- Lakeway Police Department
- Cedar Park Police Department
- Round Rock Police Department
From KUT 90.5.
Austin Public Safety Commission to weigh in on TRUST Act, surveillance tech Tuesday
The Austin Public Safety Commission meets today at 4 p.m. at the Permitting and Development Center, with a full slate of public safety topics — including a discussion of the TRUST Act‘s role in local policing and a vote on surveillance technology recommendations to City Council.
TRUST Act and surveillance tech (the headline items):
- Item 4 is a discussion of the TRUST Act and how it applies to public safety technologies and data sharing between government entities. The presenter is Mackenzie Rhine, an attorney and board member with the Electronic Frontier Foundation — notable, since EFF is a digital-rights group that has been a vocal critic of surveillance tools like automated license plate readers. This is framed as informational, not a vote.
- Item 5 is where the commission takes action: members will vote on a recommendation to City Council regarding public safety surveillance technology and data sharing. The agenda doesn’t spell out specifics (e.g., it doesn’t name license plate readers directly), so the content of that recommendation will depend on what’s discussed live — worth watching or following up on for specifics on ALPRs.
Other agenda items:
Item 1: Routine approval of August 3 meeting minutes.
- Item 2: Quarterly report from Austin-Travis County EMS, presented by Chief of Staff Wesley Hopkins.
- Item 3: Discussion of a recent Mental Health Audit with the City Auditor’s Office (Kathie Harrison and Mariel Dempster).
- Item 6: Vote on a recommendation to Council stemming from that Mental Health Audit.
- Meeting opens with general public comment (first 5 registered speakers, 3 minutes each) and closes with future agenda items and adjournment.
Austin ISD is narrowing its plans to redraw school boundaries for next school year.
A state takeover of Austin ISD could strip local authority and disrupt housing, healthcare, and the broader economy. As the decision approaches, Mayor Kirk Watson is fighting to keep control local. (Austin Current)
Austin firefighters responded to a fire at Perla’s restaurant on South Congress Avenue Sunday evening after flames were discovered in a vent hood and smoke was seen coming from the roof.
The business has closed indefinitely.
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The Texas Department of Transportation is seeking the public’s feedback on a possible $82 million expansion to Highway 79 in Round Rock.
Due to safety concerns, jet skis were prohibited on Lake Austin during the Labor Day holiday weekend. There are some businesses along the waterway that would like to see that ban be permanent.
WEATHER
MONDAY’S HIGH / LOW TEMPERATURES
AUSTIN-BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
CAMP MABRY
5-DAY FORECAST / AUSTIN, TEXAS
An active Labor Day yesterday for Texas firefighters.
We begin with the massive Ross Fire in Palo Pinto and Jack counties that continues to burn since August 24. There has been forward progress on containment (now at 57%), but the sheer size of the blaze has made this one the largest summertime wildfire recorded in Texas since detailed tracking began in 2005.
The No Fence Fire is burning in Burnet County.
Two fires are active in Sutton County.
Schleicher County also has two active wildfires burning.
James Talarico leads Ken Paxton in fundraising, but a recent Supreme Court ruling may open a powerful new source of campaign support.
Texas Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright joined The Texan’s Reporter Isaiah Mitchell to discuss the history of the state’s oil and gas industry and its oldest regulatory agency, energy infrastructure and the Permian Basin Reliability Plan, and more.
It seems like every day, you hear a new story about data centers. But beyond the hype, what do we know about them? What are they? Why are so many being built right now? And who gets to decide where they go?
Today, Austin Signal has a special 1-hour show focused on data centers. It’s a special KUT News series called The Data Center Next Door. The show compiles five stories from KUT county reporters…
(Episode from September 7, 2026)
Aiming to protect their congressional majorities, President Donald Trump and Republicans are heading to Texas for the party’s first GOP midterm convention with less than two months until Election Day.
President Trump says breaking up major meat processors will help ranchers, but Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller is skeptical.
AAA GAS PRICES
The Corpus Christi City Council voted 5-3 to reject, again, an almost billion-dollar water treatment plant after a decade of effort and with its long-term water supply still in question. (San Antonio News-Express)
To eradicate the New World screwworm—a dangerous pest that lays eggs on warm-blooded animals and causes severe infections—the U.S. government has released its billionth sterile fly in Texas. This initiative revives a proven technique previously used to eliminate the species from the United States decades ago. (KHOU-TV)
San Antonio Police have released video of a fatal officer-involved shooting that happened back in July.
Over the objections of Muslim organizations and civil rights advocates, Texas education officials voted Friday to adopt updated social studies standards. Critics say the new curriculum promotes anti-Muslim bias by framing Prophet Muhammad as a brutal warrior who relied on violence and slavery to spread Islam, as well as linking the 9/11 attacks directly to “radical Islam.” (Texas Public Radio)
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has launched an audit of Tesla’s safety certification process to determine if existing rules for traditional vehicles are sufficient for fully autonomous ones, like its new Cybercab.
SPORTS
COLLEGE FOOTBALL: The No. 1 Texas Longhorns turn their attention to unfinished business this week, welcoming Ohio State to Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday in a Week 2 rematch of last season’s meeting, when the Buckeyes’ defense throttled quarterback Arch Manning in a 14-7 win at Ohio Stadium.
Texas enters 2026 as a national championship favorite after an offseason overhaul that added receiver Cam Coleman and running back Hollywood Smothers, but head coach Steve Sarkisian’s squad will have to get past Ohio State standout Jeremiah Smith to notch the statement win it couldn’t find a season ago.
Can Arch Manning and the revamped run game shed the demons of slow starts and red zone woes, or will history repeat itself in this high-stakes college football showdown?
Reports say that more than a dozen fans were treated for heat-related issues during Saturday’s game against Texas State.
MLB: It was an off-day for both the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros Monday. They both resume action tonight on the road. Houston holds a two-game lead over the Rangers in the tight AL West division.
This week, Landon and Jeremiah discuss the new center back signing, Chris Applewhite, and the San Jose match…and more.
The Dallas Cowboys could leap into the NFL’s top 12 defenses in 2026, but can Christian Parker transform last year’s flawed unit this quickly?
John Hickman is breaking down exactly why they’re so high on the Houston Texans quarterback heading into the 2026 NFL season — and the numbers tell a much better story than the noise around him.
Let’s keep talking sports.
Matthew McConaughey joins SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt to preview the Week 2 matchup between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Texas Longhorns and discuss Arch Manning’s second season as starting quarterback in Austin.
