Texas Cities of Dallas, Bastrop, and Lockhart Vote to Decriminalize Cannabis

Voters in the Texas cities of Dallas, Bastrop, and Lockheart on Tuesday approved local ordinances to decriminalize cannabis possession.

Dallas voters passed Proposition R with over 66% support. The proposal makes low-level cannabis possession local law enforcement’s “lowest enforcement priority,” decriminalizing the possession of up to 4 ounces of cannabis within the city limits.

Voters in Bastrop passed Proposition M with 69% support; the proposal also makes low-level cannabis enforcement the lowest priority for police.

In Lockhart, Proposition A won 68% of the vote. Similarly, the proposal makes simple cannabis possession the city’s lowest law enforcement priority. When city officials agreed to put the proposition to voters earlier this year, they briefly considered breaking it up into 13 separate questions. Following pushback, however, the wording was reworked to a single question.

The three Texas cities join five others — Austin, Denton, Elgin, Killeen, and San Marcos — that have approved similar decriminalization policies. Meanwhile, two Texas cities recently considered similar reforms and rejected them: San Antonia last year and Lubbock earlier this year in May. Notably, the San Antonio proposal was tied to a larger criminal justice reform effort.

Meanwhile, a Texas Department of Public Safety report published last month found the state’s medical cannabis program to be inadequate, saying it does not provide the “statewide access” for qualifying patients outlined under state law.