High, How Are You?

Texas' first medical marijuana dispensary will deliver to Dallas

Compassionate Cultivation opens in the Austin area in February.

Photo courtesy of US Fish & Wildlife

The first cannabis dispensary is set to open in Texas next month, a little more than four months after the Texas Department of Public Safety granted the first three medical marijuana licenses in the history of the state.

Beginning February 8, a company called Compassionate Cultivation will allow qualified patients access to low-THC medical cannabis products and state-regulated cannabidiol oil, known as CBD oil, from a shop at 12701 Lowden Ln. in Manchaca, near Austin. Currently, the products are only available to state-registered patients or their guardians.

For Texans unable to travel to the Austin area, the dispensary will offer a delivery service to accommodate patients across the state — including those in Dallas.

"We are thrilled to offer the highest quality medical cannabis products, with plants grown and refined by our cultivation and engineering experts at our state-of-the-art facility," says Compassionate Cultivation CEO Morris Denton in a release.

Following the passing of the Compassionate Use Act in 2015, Texas doctors are allowed to prescribe marijuana-based treatments to patients suffering from intractable epilepsy. However, like all states that have legalized recreational and medicinal marijuana, it's still a violation of federal law.

Under the Obama administration, barriers were set in place to help shield the marijuana industry from federal prosecution, but earlier this month, the Trump administration announced it would be renewing federal enforcement of marijuana laws, a decision that garnered criticism from both Democrats and Republicans.

Texas physicians do run the risk of board sanctions and federal prosecution, despite evidence that low-grade marijuana can help in the treatment of epilepsy and other seizure disorders. According to Houston Public Media, only seven of Texas' 400 neurologists have signed up to prescribe CBD oil, likely due to the threat of losing their medical license.

Despite turmoil and confusion in the growing industry, Compassionate Cultivation says its staff has been going across the state in an attempt to educate physicians on the benefits of medicinal marijuana.

"I'm amazed by the medical capacity of this program," says dispensary manager Cullen Vujosevic. "In New Mexico and other states, there's no medical provider interaction woven into the medical cannabis program. But in Texas, the Compassionate Use Act is heavily integrated with the health care providers who closely interact with patients. That allows physicians to provide patients with a much higher level of medical care."

Patients can also receive information and advice from dispensary staff. "[We] provide patient consultations, physician outreach resources, and detailed information on our product lines and retail merchandise," Vujosevic says.

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who needs a raise?

Here's the income it takes to be in the top 1 percent in Texas in 2026

Hundred dollar bills, top 1 percent earners, income study

Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash

The income needed to be ranked among the top 1 percent of earners in Texas has snowballed past $800,000.

In a state where local billionaires are wealthier than they've ever been, high-earning Texans need to make $73,000 more than they did a year ago if they want to be among the top 1 percent of earners, a new report has revealed.

SmartAsset's latest study analyzed income thresholds for the top 1, 5, and 10 percent of earners in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, using 2022 IRS data for individual tax return filers (the most recent year available), adjusted to 2026 dollars.

Texas has the 11th highest income threshold, with residents needing to make a minimum of $817,158 to be considered among the top 1 percent of earners statewide. In 2025, Texans needed to make about $744,000 to be among the top 1 percent.

For comparison, residents living in the nation's capital must make at least $1.16 million to qualify as top 1 percent earners. The District of Columbia led the nation with the highest income threshold to be a top earner.

To be considered among the top 5 percent of earners in Texas, a resident would need to make $312,671. The income threshold to be considered among the top 10 percent is $210,609.

SmartAsset additionally found that 128,130 Texas residents qualified as top 1 percent earners in 2022. Nationally, the report estimated that fewer than 2 million households earn enough to be considered among the top 1 percent of earners nationwide, but 23 million households rank among the top 10 percent.

"In some places, households can enter the top 1 percent at income levels that fall well below the threshold elsewhere, reflecting an uneven landscape of wages and wealth," the report said.

A separate SmartAsset study that tracked the upper and lower thresholds for middle class households found Dallas residents need to make anywhere from $49,549 to $148,646 to maintain their middle class status. But in other North Texas cities, residents can make up to $291,000 — a figure that would place them between the top 5 and 10 percent of earners — and still be labeled "middle class."

The top 10 states with the highest thresholds to be considered in the top 1 percent of earners in the U.S. are:

No. 1 – District of Columbia ($1,156,664)
No. 2 – Connecticut ($1,147,898)
No. 3 – Massachusetts ($1,006,921)
No. 4 – California ($987,325)
No. 5– New Jersey ($969,976)
No. 6 – New York ($959,562)
No. 7 – Florida ($956,449)
No. 8 – Washington ($903,303)
No. 9 – Colorado ($828,772)
No. 10 – Wyoming ($819,014)

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High, How Are You?

Texas' first medical marijuana dispensary will deliver to Dallas

who needs a raise?

Here's the income it takes to be in the top 1 percent in Texas in 2026

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