SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio hemp business is challenging the state’s new regulations on consumable hemp products. The store’s owner said the changes have forced it to pull more than $300,000 worth of inventory from its shelves.
William Hunt, the owner of Kingpin Kush, said his business has 10 locations in San Antonio, about 40 employees and serves between 800 and 1,000 customers each day.
“We have dumped hundreds of thousands of dollars into the legal process of defending the industry,” Hunt said. “Praying for regulation, not for cancellation.”
The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) implemented new regulations July 31 affecting consumable hemp products. Texas lawmakers legalized certain hemp products in 2019 and gave DSHS authority to regulate it.
Hunt said Kingpin Kush built the business around the rules established by the state. Now, he is asking a judge to intervene.
Kingpin Kush and two other businesses have filed a more than 300-page lawsuit against the state seeking a temporary injunction. Hunt said he wants the court to pause enforcement while the issue can be addressed by state lawmakers next January.
“We feel like not one department in the state should have the authority to regulate this,” Hunt said.
The lawsuit challenges the state’s regulation of consumable hemp products and argues the new restrictions threaten businesses that have operated under the state’s previous regulatory framework.
For Hunt, the fight is about more than his own business. He said the future of his employees, customers and the broader hemp industry is at stake.
Hunt also said he is prepared to take his message to voters and state leaders.
“When we have these officials saying, ‘If you don’t like it, vote me out.’ Challenge accepted,” Hunt said. “We’re going to raise the votes here.”
KSAT contacted the Texas Department of State Health Services for a response to the lawsuit.
“DSHS doesn’t comment on pending litigation,” a DSHS spokesperson told KSAT. “We’ll respond via the court process.”
The lawsuit remains pending. A temporary restraining order hearing is expected in the coming days.
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