The first step toward legally growing marijuana in the state of Texas could come Thursday.

The Texas Department of Public Safety is scheduled to begin accepting applications for licenses to dispense low-THC cannabis under the state’s Compassionate Use Act.

The town of Gunter, Texas, fifty miles north of Dallas, may be among the first locations approved. A company called Aquiflow, has purchased the town’s old cotton gin with plans to start production.

“If it’s legal, I’m all for it,” said Mayor Pro Tem Larry Peters.

In November, Floridians overwhelmingly voted to legalize medical marijuana. Seventy-one percent of voters backed Amendment 2, requiring the legislature to make rules by July 3. By September, medical pot is supposed to be available statewide.

But try telling that to the City of Miami. Nearly four months after the election, officials in the Magic City are still debating whether medical marijuana is even legal at all.

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An Iowa House subcommittee approved a bill that would legalize medical marijuana oil and create a state-run program to grow and dispense the product.

People affected by epileptic seizures, multiple sclerosis and cancer spoke Wednesday in support of the bill, telling lawmakers cannabis oil helped them. The GOP-led panel unanimously supported the bill, which now moves to the House public safety committee.

The Iowa Department of Public Health would run the program, and an agency official said it was important participants receive license cards.

Rep. Jared Klein, a Republican from Keota, noted the legislation doesn't legalize recreational marijuana but only allows cannabis oil for medical treatment. He says 28 states have passed similar bills.

Military veterans said that for many, marijuana offers a safer treatment option than prescription painkillers.

A stack of letters urged Gov. Greg Abbott to rethink his opposition to medical marijuana.

Texas military veterans gathered Wednesday at the Capitol to press lawmakers and Gov. Greg Abbott to allow for the medical use of marijuana, saying the drug offers life-saving treatment for those afflicted with chronic pain, brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder.

“I wake up each day in pain,” said retired Army Sgt. Javier Tovias of Edinburg, who stopped taking prescription pain medication because of adverse health effects.

The incredible story of how two Texas parents illegally use marijuana to treat their 17-year-old daughter's severe autism is reaching millions online, and prompting more discussion about legalization of medical uses for the drug in Texas.

Seventeen-year-old Kara Zartler of Richardson, Texas, has severe autism with self-injurious symptoms, causing her, at times, to hit herself repeatedly and uncontrollably.

Researchers in Northern California have delivered some unsettling news for marijuana users: It turns out, a sizeable amount of the pot sold in California's medical marijuana dispensaries test positive for mold and bacteria that could be dangerous for patients with compromised immune systems.

Though the study only looked at cannabis sold in Northern California dispensaries, the researchers caution that the problem could be widespread, affecting the whole state and possibly others where the plant is legal for medical or recreational purposes.

A Lake Jackson woman battling a bone-eating cancer is meeting with Texas lawmakers Thursday in an effort to legalize medical marijuana for patients with a variety of debilitating conditions.

Cherie Rineker was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2012. She said her husband and daughter encourage her to keep fighting.

"I want to be around for her not just on the couch, but as productive and as good as I can," Rineker said.

Part of her fight is advocating for people like herself to be able to use marijuana legally in Texas to help ease their pain.

Senate panel heard testimony on Monday over proposed bill.

Kansas could soon become one of the next states to legalize marijuana for medical purposes.

On Monday, the Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee heard testimony over a proposal (Senate Bill 155) aimed at legalizing marijuana for patients suffering from debilitating conditions. If approved, patients with severe health issues, including cancer, chronic pain, and epilepsy, would have access to cannabis medicine with a doctor’s recommendation.

For years, marijuana has been labeled a so-called “gateway” drug, blamed for leading drug users down the path toward harder, more destructive drug use.

A review of studies in the journal Trends in Neuroscience, however, indicates that not only is cannabis unlikely to lead to harder drug use, it shows signs of being useful in the treatment of opioid addiction.