Bill Text: TX HB4439 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating to the production, sale, distribution, delivery, and regulation of consumable hemp products; creating a criminal offense.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-03-21 - Referred to Public Health [HB4439 Detail]

Download: Texas-2023-HB4439-Introduced.html

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88R8983 MP-F
By: Moody H.B. No. 4439

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the production, sale, distribution, delivery, and
regulation of consumable hemp products; creating a criminal
offense.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 443, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 443.005 to read as follows:
Sec. 443.005. CONSUMABLE HEMP PRODUCTS ACCOUNT. (a) The
consumable hemp products account is an account in the general
revenue fund administered by the department.
(b) The account consists of:
(1) appropriations of money to the account by the
legislature;
(2) public or private gifts, grants, or donations,
including federal funds, received for the account;
(3) fees collected under this chapter or under Chapter
431 as it applies to consumable hemp products;
(4) interest and income earned on the investment of
money in the account;
(5) penalties for violations of this chapter or
Chapter 431 as it applies to consumable hemp products; and
(6) funds from any other source deposited in the
account.
(c) The department may accept appropriations and gifts,
grants, or donations from any source to administer and enforce this
chapter and Chapter 431 as it applies to consumable hemp products.
Money received under this subsection shall be deposited in the
account.
(d) Money in the account may be appropriated only to the
department for the administration and enforcement of this chapter
and Chapter 431 as it applies to consumable hemp products.
SECTION 2. Section 443.103, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 443.103. APPLICATION; ISSUANCE. An individual or
establishment may apply for a license under this subchapter by
submitting an application to the department on a form and in the
manner prescribed by the department. The application must be
accompanied by:
(1) the physical address [a legal description] of each
location where the applicant intends to process hemp or manufacture
consumable hemp products [and the global positioning system
coordinates for the perimeter of each location];
(2) written consent from the applicant or the property
owner if the applicant is not the property owner allowing the
department, the Department of Public Safety, and any other state or
local law enforcement agency to enter onto all premises where hemp
is processed or consumable hemp products are manufactured to
conduct a physical inspection or to ensure compliance with this
chapter and rules adopted under this chapter;
(3) any fees required by the department to be
submitted with the application; and
(4) any other information required by department rule.
SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 443, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 443.106 to read as follows:
Sec. 443.106. EXPEDITED LICENSING PROCESS. The department
by rule may provide an expedited licensing process for the
purchaser of a business that requires a license.
SECTION 4. Section 443.151(c), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(c) Before material extracted from hemp by processing is
sold as, offered for sale as, or incorporated into a consumable hemp
product, the material must be tested, as required by the executive
commissioner, to determine:
(1) the presence of harmful microorganisms; and
(2) the presence or quantity of:
(A) any residual solvents used in processing, if
applicable; [and]
(B) any synthetic cannabinoid; and
(C) any other substance prescribed by the
department.
SECTION 5. Section 443.152, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
(d) The executive commissioner by rule may exclude a
substance that is generally recognized as having no risk of
contaminating a finished consumable hemp product, including a
microorganism or other substance that is inevitably destroyed or
removed while processing or manufacturing the product, from the
testing required under Section 443.151.
SECTION 6. Section 443.201, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) A person may transport and deliver a consumable hemp
product to a consumer who purchased the product in compliance with
this chapter. The person transporting and delivering the
consumable hemp product shall maintain at all times while the
consumable hemp product is in the person's possession a record
sufficient to demonstrate that the transaction complies with this
chapter. The person transporting and delivering the consumable
hemp product is not required to:
(1) obtain a license under Section 443.101, unless the
person processes or manufactures the product delivered; or
(2) register under Section 443.2025, unless the person
sells the product delivered.
SECTION 7. Section 443.2025, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (b), (d), and (f) and adding
Subsection (d-1) to read as follows:
(b) A person may not sell or distribute consumable hemp
products [containing cannabidiol at retail] in this state, other
than products generally recognized as safe by the United States
Food and Drug Administration, unless the person registers with the
department each location owned, operated, or controlled by the
person at which those products are sold. A person is not required
to register a location associated with an employee or independent
contractor described by Subsection (d).
(d) Except as provided by Subsection (d-1), a [A] person is
not required to register with the department under Subsection (b)
if the person is:
(1) an employee of a registrant; or
(2) an independent contractor of a registrant who
sells the registrant's products to consumers [at retail].
(d-1) A person is required to register with the department
under Subsection (b) if the person, as an employee or independent
contractor of a person located outside this state who is not a
registrant, sells or distributes products covered by Subsection (b)
in this state.
(f) The department by rule may adopt a registration fee
schedule that establishes reasonable fee amounts for the
registration of:
(1) a single location at which consumable hemp
products [containing cannabidiol] are sold; and
(2) multiple locations at which consumable hemp
products [containing cannabidiol] are sold under a single
registration.
SECTION 8. Section 443.204, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 443.204. RULES RELATED TO SALE OF CONSUMABLE HEMP
PRODUCTS. (a) Rules adopted by the executive commissioner
regulating the sale of consumable hemp products must to the extent
allowable by federal law reflect the following principles:
(1) hemp-derived cannabinoids, including cannabidiol,
are not considered controlled substances or adulterants;
(2) products containing one or more hemp-derived
cannabinoids, such as cannabidiol, intended for ingestion are
considered foods, not controlled substances or adulterated
products;
(3) consumable hemp products must be packaged and
labeled in the manner provided by Section 443.205; and
(4) the processing or manufacturing of a consumable
hemp product for smoking is prohibited.
(b) The department shall propose any rules necessary to
incorporate and implement a change to this chapter, a federal
statute, or a federal regulation not later than the 90th day after
the effective date of the change. The department may also adopt the
proposed rules as emergency rules. If a change to this chapter, a
federal statute, or a federal regulation creates a conflict with
department rules, the amended chapter, statute, or regulation
controls until the department's rules incorporating and
implementing the change take effect.
SECTION 9. Section 443.205(a), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) Before a consumable hemp product, including hemp plant
material, that contains or is marketed as containing hemp-derived
[more than trace amounts of] cannabinoids may be distributed or
sold, the product must be:
(1) labeled in the manner provided by this subchapter,
including [section with] the following information:
(A) [(1)] batch or lot identification number;
(B) [(2)] batch or lot date;
(C) [(3)] product name;
(D) [(4)] a uniform resource locator (URL) that
provides or links to a certificate of analysis for the product or
each hemp-derived ingredient of the product;
(E) [(5)] the name of the product's
manufacturer; and
(F) [(6)] a certification that the delta-9
tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of the product or each
hemp-derived ingredient of the product is not more than 0.3
percent; and
(2) prepackaged or placed at the time of sale in
packaging or a container that is:
(A) tamper-evident;
(B) child-resistant; and
(C) if the product contains multiple servings or
consists of multiple products purchased in one transaction,
resealable in a manner that allows the child-resistant mechanism to
remain intact.
SECTION 10. Subchapter E, Chapter 443, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Sections 443.2055, 443.2056, 443.208,
443.209, and 443.210 to read as follows:
Sec. 443.2055. CONSUMABLE HEMP PRODUCT AND PACKAGING THAT
IS ATTRACTIVE TO CHILDREN PROHIBITED. (a) An edible consumable
hemp product that contains or is marketed as containing
hemp-derived cannabinoids may not be in the shape of a human,
animal, fruit, or cartoon or in another shape that is attractive to
children.
(b) The packaging of an edible consumable hemp product that
contains or is marketed as containing hemp-derived cannabinoids may
not:
(1) be in the shape of a human, animal, fruit, or
cartoon or in another shape that is attractive to children; or
(2) depict an image of a human, animal, fruit, or
cartoon or another image that is attractive to children.
(c) In this section, a cartoon includes a depiction of an
object, person, animal, creature, or any similar caricature that:
(1) uses comically exaggerated features and
attributes;
(2) assigns human characteristics to animals, plants,
or other objects; or
(3) has unnatural or extra-human abilities, such as
imperviousness to pain or injury, x-ray vision, tunneling at very
high speeds, or transformation.
Sec. 443.2056. PACKAGING THAT IS MISLEADING PROHIBITED.
The packaging and labeling of consumable hemp products, including
hemp plant material, that contain or are marketed as containing
hemp-derived cannabinoids may not depict any statement, artwork, or
design that would likely mislead a person to believe the package
does not contain a hemp-derived cannabinoid.
Sec. 443.208. SALE OF CONSUMABLE HEMP PRODUCTS TO PERSONS
YOUNGER THAN 21 YEARS OF AGE PROHIBITED; PROOF OF AGE REQUIRED. (a)
A person commits an offense if the person, with criminal
negligence, sells a consumable hemp product, including hemp plant
material, that contains or is marketed as containing hemp-derived
cannabinoids, to a person who is younger than 21 years of age.
(b) An employee of the owner of a store in which consumable
hemp products, including hemp plant material, that contain or are
marketed as containing hemp-derived cannabinoids, are sold at
retail is criminally responsible and subject to prosecution for an
offense under this section that occurs in connection with a sale by
the employee.
(c) An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor.
(d) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (a) that
the person to whom the consumable hemp product was sold presented to
the defendant apparently valid proof of identification.
(e) A proof of identification satisfies the requirements of
Subsection (d) if it contains a physical description and photograph
consistent with the person's appearance, purports to establish that
the person is 21 years of age or older, and was issued by a
governmental agency. The proof of identification may include a
driver's license issued by this state or another state, a passport,
or an identification card issued by a state or the federal
government.
(f) It is an exception to the application of Subsection (a)
that the person to whom the consumable hemp product was sold is at
least 18 years of age and presented at the time of purchase a valid
military identification card of the United States military forces
or the state military forces.
(g) A person who owns, manages, or operates an Internet
website that contains an e-commerce platform on which consumable
hemp products, including hemp plant material, that contain or are
marketed as containing hemp-derived cannabinoids are sold at retail
or offered for retail sale must:
(1) require a consumer accessing the e-commerce
platform to state affirmatively that the person is at least 21 years
of age; and
(2) prior to completing a purchase on the e-commerce
platform, verify a consumer's age by:
(A) using a reliable online age verification
service; or
(B) obtaining and examining a copy of a valid
government-issued identification.
Sec. 443.209. SALE OF CERTAIN CONSUMABLE HEMP PRODUCTS TO
PERSONS YOUNGER THAN 21 YEARS OF AGE. (a) The department by rule
shall adopt a list of hemp-derived cannabinoids that are exempt
from the requirements of Sections 443.205(a)(2), 443.2055, and
443.208.
(b) The list adopted under Subsection (a):
(1) must include cannabidiol; and
(2) may include cannabinoid quantity thresholds.
(c) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), Sections
443.205(a)(2), 443.2055, and 443.208 apply to any consumable hemp
product that contains:
(1) a hemp-derived cannabinoid not included on the
list adopted under Subsection (a); or
(2) a quantity of a hemp-derived cannabinoid that
exceeds the applicable threshold established under Subsection
(b)(2).
Sec. 443.210. APPLICABILITY OF PENALTIES TO CERTAIN
RETAILERS. Notwithstanding another provision of this subchapter, a
retailer of consumable hemp products is not liable for a penalty
under this subchapter if the retailer proves by a preponderance of
the evidence that the violation was unintentional and due to the
retailer's good faith reliance on a representation made by a
manufacturer, processor, or distributor of consumable hemp
products.
SECTION 11. Notwithstanding any other law, a retailer may
possess, transport, or sell a consumable hemp product that becomes
part of the retailer's inventory before rules required to implement
the changes in law made by this Act become effective unless the
product:
(1) is unsafe for consumption based on the presence or
quantity of heavy metals, pesticides, harmful microorganisms, or
residual solvents; or
(2) has a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration
that exceeds the concentration allowed by federal law for hemp.
SECTION 12. Not later than December 1, 2023, the Department
of State Health Services shall adopt the list of hemp-derived
cannabinoids that may be sold to persons younger than 21 years of
age as required by Section 443.209, Health and Safety Code, as added
by this Act.
SECTION 13. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.