Texas Attorney General
is suing five cities – Austin, San Marcos, Killeen, Elgin, and Denton – to block their ordinances decriminalizing low-level marijuana possession.
In 2022, voters in the five cities approved policies that would end arrests and citations for possessing of fewer than four ounces of marijuana. An initiative spearheaded by Ground Game Texas – the progressive group that first launched the proposition in Austin – worked with local organizations in the other four cities and succeeded in pushing for similar policies to appear on the ballots.
Paxton said in a
that the cities violated state laws and the Texas constitution concerning marijuana possession and distribution, claiming it to be unlawful for municipalities to adopt ordinances inconsistent with laws enacted by the Texas Legislature.
The ordinances had high levels of support. Austin received an overwhelming
. In San Marcos, about
were in favor. Elgin followed with almost