List of Texas Drug Charges and Sentences by Penalty Group

Texas drug charges and sentences are set by two things working together: which Penalty Group the substance falls into, and how much of it you had. The lightest outcome is a $500 fine for paraphernalia. The heaviest is 10 to 99 years or life and a $250,000 fine for delivering 400 grams or more of a Penalty Group 1 drug like cocaine or heroin. Fentanyl carries its own track, including a possible murder charge if someone dies. A single gram can move a charge from a state jail felony to a third-degree felony, and where the offense happened, who was involved, and whether you have prior convictions can all push the range higher.

How Texas Sorts Drugs Into Penalty Groups

The Texas Controlled Substances Act splits drugs into six Penalty Groups based on abuse potential and accepted medical use. The group sets the baseline; weight sets the tier within it.

  • Penalty Group 1: cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, oxycodone, and other opioids.1State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.102 – Penalty Group 1
  • Penalty Group 1-B: fentanyl and its analogs, including carfentanil, alfentanil, and sufentanil. Added in 2023 and carrying unique murder exposure when a delivery causes death.2State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.1022 – Penalty Group 1-B
  • Penalty Group 1-A: LSD and its chemical variants. Penalties are measured by doses rather than weight.
  • Penalty Group 2: MDMA (ecstasy), PCP, and many synthetic cannabinoids.
  • Penalty Group 3: prescription stimulants and depressants such as Ritalin, some benzodiazepines, and some anabolic steroids.
  • Penalty Group 4: compounds mixing small amounts of narcotics with non-narcotic ingredients, such as codeine cough syrup.

Marijuana is handled under its own statute, not under the Penalty Group framework.

Penalty Group 1 and 1-B: Possession

Possessing any amount of a Penalty Group 1 or 1-B substance without a valid prescription is a felony. The weight tiers:3State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.115 – Offense Possession of Substance in Penalty Group 1 or 1-B

  • Less than 1 gram: state jail felony, 180 days to 2 years in state jail and a fine up to $10,000.4State of Texas. Texas Code Penal 12.35 – State Jail Felony Punishment
  • 1 to less than 4 grams: third-degree felony, 2 to 10 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 4 to less than 200 grams: second-degree felony, 2 to 20 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 200 to less than 400 grams: first-degree felony, 5 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 400 grams or more: enhanced first-degree felony, 10 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $100,000.

State jail felonies are served in state jail facilities, not prison, and inmates there don’t earn traditional good-conduct time. A sentencing judge can award credit for up to 20 percent of the sentence through a diligent participation program if the inmate completes education, vocational training, or treatment while confined, but the judge isn’t required to grant it.5Texas Department of Criminal Justice. State Jail Diligent Participation Credit

Penalty Group 1 and 1-B: Manufacture or Delivery

Making or selling a Penalty Group 1 substance, or possessing it with intent to deliver, is punished more heavily than simple possession at every level.6State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.112 – Offense Manufacture or Delivery of Substance in Penalty Group 1

  • Less than 1 gram: state jail felony, 180 days to 2 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 1 to less than 4 grams: second-degree felony, 2 to 20 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 4 to less than 200 grams: first-degree felony, 5 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 200 to less than 400 grams: enhanced first-degree felony, 10 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $100,000.
  • 400 grams or more: enhanced first-degree felony, 15 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $250,000.

The 400-gram tier is the harshest sentencing range in the Texas drug code.

Fentanyl Deliveries That Cause Death

Penalty Group 1-B mirrors Penalty Group 1 on possession and delivery weights, but adds a murder charge. Someone who knowingly manufactures or delivers a Penalty Group 1-B substance can be charged with murder if another person dies after using it, even if the fentanyl was mixed with other drugs.7State of Texas. Texas Code Penal 19.02 – Murder A murder conviction carries 5 to 99 years or life. The only statutory defense is that the manufacturing or delivery was authorized under the Controlled Substances Act or other law, which practically limits the defense to licensed pharmacists and medical professionals.

A separate enhancement applies across all Penalty Groups: any controlled substance delivery that causes death or serious bodily injury is bumped up one degree. A state jail felony becomes third-degree, a third-degree becomes second-degree, and a second-degree becomes first-degree.

Penalty Group 2: Possession and Delivery

Penalty Group 2 covers hallucinogens and many synthetics. Possession tiers match Penalty Group 1 at the low end but diverge higher up.8State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.116 – Offense Possession of Substance in Penalty Group 2

  • Less than 1 gram: state jail felony, 180 days to 2 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 1 to less than 4 grams: third-degree felony, 2 to 10 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 4 to less than 400 grams: second-degree felony, 2 to 20 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 400 grams or more: enhanced first-degree felony, 5 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $50,000.

The second-degree tier stretches to 400 grams instead of stopping at 200, so 250 grams of MDMA sits in a 2-to-20 range rather than the 5-to-99 range that same weight of cocaine would trigger.

Delivery penalties for Penalty Group 2:9State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.113 – Offense Manufacture or Delivery of Substance in Penalty Group 2

  • Less than 1 gram: state jail felony, 180 days to 2 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 1 to less than 4 grams: second-degree felony, 2 to 20 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 4 to less than 400 grams: first-degree felony, 5 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $10,000.
  • 400 grams or more: enhanced first-degree felony, 10 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $100,000.

Penalty Groups 3 and 4

These groups cover prescription medications with lower abuse potential and carry the lightest penalties in the drug code. Possession of less than 28 grams in either group is a Class A misdemeanor, up to one year in county jail and a fine up to $4,000.10State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.117 – Offense Possession of Substance in Penalty Group 3 This is the only Penalty Group category where simple possession can be a misdemeanor.

Once possession hits 28 grams, the charge becomes a third-degree felony. Above 200 grams it reaches second-degree felony territory. Manufacture or delivery runs on a steeper scale: even less than one gram is a state jail felony, and quantities above 200 grams land in the first-degree felony range.

Marijuana Charges

Marijuana has its own statute and its own weight units.

Marijuana Possession

Amounts above five pounds continue escalating through the third-degree, second-degree, and first-degree felony ranges. The felony line sits at just over four ounces, roughly a quarter-pound.

Marijuana Delivery

Delivery penalties depend on both amount and whether the seller was paid.12State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.120 – Offense Delivery of Marihuana

  • One-quarter ounce or less, given away without payment: third-degree felony on paper, punished at 2 to 20 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • One-quarter ounce or less, sold for payment: Class A misdemeanor, up to one year and a fine up to $4,000.
  • More than one-quarter ounce to 50 pounds: second-degree felony, 2 to 20 years and a fine up to $10,000.
  • More than 50 pounds to 2,000 pounds: first-degree felony, 5 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $10,000.
  • More than 2,000 pounds: enhanced first-degree felony, 10 to 99 years or life and a fine up to $100,000.

Giving away a small amount without payment is classified more harshly than selling it. The giveaway is a third-degree felony (sentenced at the second-degree range); the sale is a Class A misdemeanor.

Hemp and Delta-8 THC

Hemp is defined in Texas as cannabis containing no more than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC by dry weight; anything above that threshold is marijuana under the criminal statute.13Texas State Law Library. Consumable Hemp Products Delta-8 THC products derived from hemp have existed in a legal gray area. Consumable hemp products are regulated under Chapter 443 of the Health and Safety Code, and sale to anyone under 21 is prohibited. Starting in November 2026, a new federal definition of hemp will exclude products with “intoxicating levels of THC,” moving away from the flat 0.3 percent threshold. Products reclassified as controlled substances rather than hemp could trigger criminal charges that did not previously exist.

Drug Paraphernalia

Owning or using drug paraphernalia is a Class C misdemeanor: a fine up to $500 and no jail time. Selling paraphernalia, or possessing it with intent to sell, is a Class A misdemeanor, up to one year in jail and a fine up to $4,000. A second delivery offense carries a mandatory minimum of 90 days. Delivering paraphernalia to someone under 18 who is at least three years younger than the seller jumps to a state jail felony, 180 days to 2 years and a fine up to $10,000.

Drug-Free Zone Enhancements

Committing a drug offense near certain places automatically increases the severity of the charge.14State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.134 – Drug-Free Zones

  • Within 1,000 feet: schools (elementary, secondary, and day-care centers), playgrounds, youth centers, institutions of higher education, and residential treatment centers.
  • Within 300 feet: public swimming pools and video arcade facilities.
  • On a school bus: any drug offense committed there triggers the enhancement.

For delivery and manufacturing offenses in these zones, the charge is bumped up one felony degree. For other drug offenses in the zones, the minimum prison term increases by five years and the maximum fine doubles. Anyone serving a sentence enhanced under this statute must serve at least five years of actual calendar time before becoming parole-eligible, regardless of how short the total sentence is.15State of Texas. Texas Code Government 508.145 – Eligibility for Release on Parole

Prior Convictions

Criminal history can reshape the range for a new drug charge.16State of Texas. Texas Code Penal 12.42 – Penalties for Repeat and Habitual Felony Offenders on Trial for First, Second, or Third Degree Felony

  • One prior felony: the new charge is punished one degree higher. A third-degree felony (2 to 10) becomes second-degree (2 to 20); a second-degree becomes first-degree (5 to 99 or life).
  • One prior felony where the new charge is first-degree: the range shifts to 15 to 99 years or life.
  • Two prior sequential felonies: mandatory 25 to 99 years or life, regardless of the current charge’s original degree.

State jail felony priors don’t count toward the two-prior habitual enhancement. Two or more prior state jail felonies where the defendant actually served time in state jail, however, can elevate a new state jail felony to a third-degree felony, taking the maximum from 2 years to 10.

Using a Minor in a Drug Offense

Using or attempting to use anyone under 18 to help commit a drug crime bumps the offense up one degree.17Texas Constitution and Statutes. Texas Code Health and Safety 481.140 – Use of Child in Commission of Offense If force or the threat of force was used against the minor to gain cooperation, the charge becomes a first-degree felony regardless of the underlying offense level.

How Much Time You Actually Serve

For most non-enhanced drug felonies, parole eligibility arrives after one-quarter of the sentence, and good-conduct time can count toward that calculation. Certain aggravated drug offenses (“3g” offenses) require serving at least half the sentence in actual calendar time before parole eligibility, with a two-year minimum and a 30-calendar-year cap. Drug-free zone enhancements carry a separate five-year real-time floor.15State of Texas. Texas Code Government 508.145 – Eligibility for Release on Parole

State jail felonies work differently. There is no parole from state jail. The sentence is served day-for-day, with the only possible reduction being the diligent participation credit the sentencing judge may grant.5Texas Department of Criminal Justice. State Jail Diligent Participation Credit

Alternatives to Prison

Texas judges can place eligible defendants on deferred adjudication community supervision, a form of probation where the court delays entering a formal conviction.18State of Texas. Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Art 42A.102 – Placement on Deferred Adjudication Community Supervision Complete the conditions, which typically include drug testing, counseling, community service, regular check-ins, and payment of fees and court costs, and the case is dismissed without a conviction. Violate any condition and the judge can revoke the deferral and impose the maximum sentence for the original charge. Someone on deferred adjudication for a second-degree felony who fails a drug test faces up to 20 years. Deferred adjudication isn’t available for certain larger-quantity fentanyl delivery offenses, and it’s blocked for defendants who previously received deferred adjudication for a drug-free zone offense and are charged with another one.

Many Texas counties operate drug courts and pretrial diversion programs. Drug courts use a treatment-focused model with intensive supervision, regular court appearances, and mandatory substance abuse treatment. Pretrial diversion suspends a case while the defendant completes conditions like counseling and community service. Both can end in dismissal. Eligibility varies by county and is usually limited to nonviolent offenders without significant criminal history, admission is at the prosecutor’s discretion, and defendants generally must acknowledge guilt in a sealed document as a condition of entry.