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Good morning — here’s the regulatory picture for alcohol and hemp/THC beverages, readable in about three minutes. Every headline links to the original source. A quieter weekend news cycle, so today’s edition runs a few items lighter than usual.
TOP STORY
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Texas appeals court cancels hemp-rules arguments after Democratic justices win election
TEXAS • Marijuana Moment / The Texas Tribune • Nov 7
Texas’s 15th Court of Appeals canceled oral arguments set for December 8 in the hemp industry’s challenge to Department of State Health Services rules, days after voters replaced all three of the court’s Republican justices with Democrats who take office in early January. The rules — temporarily blocked by a Travis County judge since April 10 — would require child-resistant packaging, new labeling, testing and bookkeeping, set the purchase age at 21, and raise license costs across tiers: a manufacturer license would rise from $258 to $10,000 per facility, and a retail registration from $155 to $5,000 per location, both payable by anyone making or selling consumable hemp products in the state. Justice Scott Field said the court did not want to “waste the lawyers’ time with an argument” if the incoming court might also want to hear it.
Why it matters: The roughly $10,000-per-facility and $5,000-per-store fee schedule stays on hold while the case waits for the new court — a Texas retail partner with ten registered locations faces a potential $50,000 annual registration exposure, versus $1,550 today, and will not get a final answer until the case is reset in 2027.
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FEDERAL DEA and rescheduling opponents file final briefs as Schedule III hearing record closes FEDERAL • Marijuana Moment • Nov 6 Both sides filed what are expected to be their final briefs before DEA administrative law judge Derek Julius in the proceeding on moving marijuana to Schedule III. The DEA argued a recent GAO report on federal drug-review processes should receive “no weight,” while opponents said the report shows the government cannot meet its burden of proof; Julius will now prepare a recommendation for the DEA administrator. Why it matters: A Schedule III move would change federal tax treatment across the cannabis sector and shape how regulators approach THC beverages — the recommendation is now the next milestone to watch.
AROUND THE STATES Illinois businesses race Wednesday deadline to pull hemp THC drinks; trade group seeks emergency court order ILLINOIS • Chicago Sun-Times • Nov 7 With Illinois’s November 12 compliance date days away, Chicago breweries, venues and retailers — including the United Center and the Salt Shed — say they will pull hemp-derived THC drinks, which after Wednesday may be sold only at state-licensed cannabis dispensaries. The Illinois Healthy Alternatives Association and a group of hemp businesses filed an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order, arguing the law is unconstitutional. Manufacturers staying in the category need an Illinois Department of Agriculture license — an application, an on-site inspection and a $5,000 fee, required of anyone who handles, processes or extracts hemp or manufactures hemp-derived products. Why it matters: Illinois distribution and retail partners must have non-dispensary hemp-beverage inventory off shelves by Wednesday; the state deadline runs about a month ahead of the delayed federal date. Incoming Wisconsin leaders say state will legalize marijuana within one to two years WISCONSIN • Marijuana Moment • Nov 5 Incoming Assembly Speaker Greta Neubauer (D) said lawmakers plan to legalize marijuana within one to two years after Democrats won the legislature and governorship, and Gov.-elect David Crowley (D) cited projected annual revenue of $80–170 million. Sen. Chris Larson (D) said he wants clear labeling, age limits, drugged-driving rules and a framework that favors in-state businesses.
ON THE RADAR
Wed, Nov 12 — Illinois’s intoxicating-hemp deadline: hemp THC beverages exit non-dispensary retail statewide. The federal restrictions on synthetic hemp-derived cannabinoids also remain on this original November timeline.
Thu, Dec 11 — The delayed federal hemp THC restrictions (a 0.4 mg total-THC-per-container cap) take effect, after Congress moved the date from November 12 in the September funding bill.
Pending — The DEA administrative law judge’s recommendation on Schedule III, now that final briefs are in, and any ruling on the Illinois hemp industry’s emergency TRO motion before Wednesday.
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