Voters in five Texas cities approved decriminalizing marijuana. Now city officials are standing in the way.

Newly planted marijuana plants at Texas Original Compassionate Cultivation Medical Marijuana facility in South Austin in 2021. Last month, residents in Denton, San Marcos, Killeen, Elgin and Harker Heights overwhelmingly approved ballot measures decriminalizing marijuana, but now some city officials are saying that this issue should be decided at the state level. (Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune)

The fight in several Texas cities to decriminalize marijuana has entered a new phase, as some city leaders have rebuffed voter-approved rules that largely end criminal enforcement against having small amounts of the substance.

Last month, residents in Denton, San Marcos, Killeen, Elgin and Harker Heights overwhelmingly approved ballot measures that sought to ban arrests and citations for carrying less than 4 ounces of marijuana in most instances. They also approved new rules blocking cities from funding THC concentration tests, plus removing marijuana smell as a probable cause for search and seizure in most cases.