Relating to the use, possession, delivery, or manufacture of testing equipment that identifies the presence of a substance listed in Penalty Group 1-B or xylazine.
Bill overview
Relating to the use, possession, delivery, or manufacture of testing equipment that identifies the presence of a substance listed in Penalty Group 1-B or xylazine.
Reference notes
HB 1644 sources, status methodology and verification
Sources
- HB 1644 official legislative recordPrimary bill-status record.
- Current official bill textOfficial bill text or printing.
Methodology
KeepTXRed treats the official legislative record and latest official action as the factual status layer for HB 1644. Status labels are normalized for browsing, while the legislative timeline and documents preserve official action text and source links. Any KeepTXRed explanation below is editorial context and remains separate from the official record.
Last verified
Legislative record synchronized September 1, 2026 at 12:55 AM UTC; latest recorded official action April 24, 2025.
Bill → law → agency context
This relationship layer distinguishes what the normalized official record can prove from what it cannot. Enactment and effective dates come from the bill record. Agency names below are shown only when an official fiscal document supplies a verified agency reference; being cited in a fiscal note does not by itself prove that the agency administers the resulting law.
Official fiscal-note agency context
No verified agency references are available from the latest parsed official fiscal material. KeepTXRed does not infer an administering agency from the bill topic or title.
KeepTXRed explanation
This reviewed explanation is separate from the official bill record and is provided for general information, not legal advice.
KeepTXRed summary
HB 1644 was a House-passed harm-reduction proposal to exempt certain drug-testing equipment used to identify a Penalty Group 1-B substance or xylazine from Texas drug-paraphernalia restrictions. The Senate did not pass it.
What would change
The proposal would have made the drug-paraphernalia offense inapplicable to a person who used, possessed, delivered or manufactured qualifying testing equipment for identifying a Penalty Group 1-B substance or xylazine, with the change applying prospectively to offenses after the proposed effective date.
Who may be affected
People using drug-checking equipment, harm-reduction organizations, health professionals, law-enforcement officers, prosecutors and people at risk of exposure to contaminated drugs.
When it would take effect
HB 1644 did not take effect. It passed the House and was referred to Senate Criminal Justice but did not receive Senate passage. The proposed effective date was September 1, 2025.
Limits and uncertainty
The exemption described here was not enacted through HB 1644. Current controlled-substance and drug-paraphernalia law controls whether particular testing equipment is lawful.
Editorial sources and review notes
Official House text and TLO history reviewed. House passed; Senate did not.
Editorial explanation reviewed 9/6/2026.
Current status
Passed
Referred to Criminal Justice
Latest official action
Referred to Criminal Justice
April 24, 2025 · house
Who this bill may affect
A verified audience or subject classification has not been attached to this bill yet.
Use the bill overview and official documents to determine whether the proposal may apply to you, your business, or a public agency.
Sponsors
Committee history
- Public Health
Out of committee
- Criminal Justice
In committee
Legislative timeline
Referred to Criminal Justice
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Official record
Official bill text
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Related articles
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