{"id":53981,"date":"2022-04-01T05:18:02","date_gmt":"2022-04-01T13:18:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2022\/04\/01\/house-begins-final-debate-on-federal-marijuana-legalization-bill-with-floor-vote-imminent\/"},"modified":"2022-04-01T05:45:31","modified_gmt":"2022-04-01T13:45:31","slug":"house-begins-final-debate-on-federal-marijuana-legalization-bill-with-floor-vote-imminent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2022\/04\/01\/house-begins-final-debate-on-federal-marijuana-legalization-bill-with-floor-vote-imminent\/","title":{"rendered":"House Begins Final Debate On Federal Marijuana Legalization Bill, With Floor Vote Imminent"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

This story is developing and will be updated.<\/em><\/p>\n

The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday morning opened up debate on a bill to federally legalize marijuana, with a floor vote expected within hours.<\/p>\n

The Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act from House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) was first discussed on the floor Thursday, with members approving a final rule to advance it<\/a> to a full chamber vote.<\/p>\n

This is the second time in history that a bill to end federal cannabis prohibition has been considered in a full chamber of Congress. A nearly identical version of the MORE Act passed in 2020, but it stalled in the Senate. It passed through the sponsor\u2019s panel again this session in September.<\/p>\n

Nadler opened Friday\u2019s floor debate, calling the MORE Act \u201clong overdue legislation that would reverse decades of failed federal policies based on the criminalization of marijuana.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would also take steps to address the heavy toll these policies have taken across the country, particularly among communities of color,\u201d he said. \u201cFor far too long, we have treated marijuana as a criminal justice problem, instead of as a matter of personal choice and public health.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever one\u2019s views are on the use of marijuana for recreational or medicinal use, the policy of arrest, prosecution and incarceration at the federal level has proven both unwise and unjust,\u201d the chairman said.<\/p>\n

The chairman of the Democratic Caucus, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), spoke in favor of the legislation.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have an over-criminalization problem in America. We have a mass incarceration problem in America. We have a prison industrial complex in America,\u201d he said, adding that prohibition \u201cdoesn\u2019t advance public safety and it hurts economic development.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has ruined individuals ruin lives, ruined families and ruined communities, particularly in communities of color,\u201d Jeffries said. \u201cIt\u2019s time to end the federal cannabis prohibition.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) said that \u201cit\u2019s no secret the war on drugs failed,\u201d and cited a 50-year-old report submitted by a commission appointed by President Richard Nixon that concluded that cannabis possession should be decriminalized, only to be ignored by all subsequent administrations.<\/p>\n

\u201cCongress has been out of step on this issue,\u201d he said. \u201cWe must deschedule marijuana. We must decriminalize it at the federal level. Now it\u2019s time to do some remedies to our federal marijuana laws. This is a historic time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rep. Cliff Bentz (R-OR), who managed floor time in opposition to the reform bill, acknowledged that it has been \u201cobvious for years that at some point marijuana was going to be formerly legalized.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s deeply and truly disturbing, however, about this bill is its failure to address the clear consequences of legalization,\u201d he said, arguing that the policy change will negatively impact children and lead to increased traffic accidents.<\/p>\n

After debate on the MORE Act as drafted, lawmakers will then take up three amendments that were made in order in the House Rules Committee. Here\u2019s a description of what they would accomplish:<\/p>\n

Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ):<\/strong>\u00a0Provide $10 million for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to conduct research on \u201ctechnologies and methods that law enforcement may use to determine whether a driver is impaired by marijuana.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rep. Conor Lamb (D-PA):<\/strong>\u00a0Require the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to conduct a study on the \u201cimpact of the legalization of recreational cannabis by states on the workplace\u201d and develop \u201cbest practices for use by employers that are transitioning their policies related to the use of recreational cannabis, prioritizing the development of best practices for employers engaged in federal infrastructure projects, transportation, public safety and national security.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD):<\/strong>\u00a0Require federal agencies to review security clearance denials going back to 1971 and retroactively make it so cannabis could not be used \u201cas a reason to deny or rescind a security clearance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ahead of the Thursday\u2019s floor debate on the rule, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D) said she is \u201call for\u201d the legalization bill at a press briefing, stressing that \u201cmany states have already\u201d enacted the policy change and so \u201cthis is consistent with is happening in many states across the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

After House leadership confirmed the chamber would again be voting on the MORE Act, the majority and minority leaders of the Judiciary Committee\u00a0released a nearly 500-page report<\/a>\u00a0on what the legislation would accomplish and outlining arguments for and against the reform.<\/p>\n

Also, following the Rules Committee vote on Wednesday, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a report finding that enacting the MORE Act would add billions in revenues and reduce prison costs<\/a>\u00a0over the next decade.<\/p>\n

The move to hold another vote on the cannabis legalization bill comes weeks after\u00a0congressional Democrats held a closed-to-press session at a party retreat<\/a>\u00a0that included a panel that largely centered on the reform legislation.<\/p>\n

Insiders expect the MORE Act to pass, though it will likely clear the chamber in largely partisan fashion.<\/p>\n

A pro-legalization GOP congressman who serves as co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, Rep. Dave Joyce (R), authored a Marijuana Moment op-ed explaining why he feels he cannot support the bill<\/a>. His office had earlier circulated a letter to other Republican offices this week offering resources on navigating cannabis policy issues but expressing opposition to the MORE Act as drafted<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Joyce separately sent a letter to Nadler last month, expressing his willingness to work with the bill sponsor on revisions to build bipartisan support.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, advocates and stakeholders are eagerly awaiting the formal introduction of a separate Senate legalization bill that\u2019s being finalized by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and colleagues. Schumer\u00a0recently said the plan is to file that bill<\/a>\u2014the\u00a0Cannabis Administration & Opportunity Act (CAOA)\u2014in April.<\/p>\n

Also in Congress, a separate bill to tax and regulate marijuana is also in play this session. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) is sponsoring that legislation, and she said in a recent interview that she\u2019s received assurances from Democratic leaders that\u00a0her States Reform Act will receive a hearing<\/a>\u00a0following the MORE Act floor vote.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, on the same day that it was announced that the MORE Act would be heading to the floor again, the Senate unanimously approved\u00a0a bipartisan bill meant to promote research into marijuana<\/a>, in part by streamlining the application process for researchers who want to study the plant and to encourage the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to develop cannabis-derived medicines.<\/p>\n

Congressional researchers separately released a report recently that\u00a0details the challenges posed by ongoing federal prohibition<\/a>\u00a0and the options that lawmakers have available to address them.<\/p>\n

\n

GOP Cannabis Caucus Leader Explains Why He Opposes Marijuana Legalization Bill Getting House Vote (Op-Ed)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Image element courtesy of Tim Evanson<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The post House Begins Final Debate On Federal Marijuana Legalization Bill, With Floor Vote Imminent<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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This story is developing and will be updated. The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday morning opened up debate on a bill to federally legalize marijuana, with a floor vote expected within hours. The Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act from House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) was firstContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53981"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53981"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53981\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":53982,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53981\/revisions\/53982"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53981"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53981"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53981"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}