{"id":73861,"date":"2024-04-08T07:07:18","date_gmt":"2024-04-08T15:07:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/04\/08\/gop-senator-urges-border-patrol-to-reverse-marijuana-employment-policy-change-arguing-loosening-rules-undermines-security\/"},"modified":"2024-04-08T12:45:45","modified_gmt":"2024-04-08T20:45:45","slug":"gop-senator-urges-border-patrol-to-reverse-marijuana-employment-policy-change-arguing-loosening-rules-undermines-security","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/04\/08\/gop-senator-urges-border-patrol-to-reverse-marijuana-employment-policy-change-arguing-loosening-rules-undermines-security\/","title":{"rendered":"GOP Senator Urges Border Patrol To \u2018Reverse\u2019 Marijuana Employment Policy Change, Arguing Loosening Rules \u2018Undermines\u2019 Security"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A GOP senator is calling on U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to \u201creverse\u201d its updated policy that narrows the window of employment ineligibility over past marijuana use from two years to three months, arguing that it \u201cundermines the security and integrity of the Border Patrol workforce\u201d and questioning the \u201ctrustworthiness\u201d of recruits who used cannabis.<\/p>\n

In a letter sent to CBP Acting Commissioner Troy Miller on Sunday, Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) said he\u2019s \u201cvery concerned about the impact\u201d of the modest reform, which he said \u201cflatly contradicts Border Patrol\u2019s mission to protect our nation against illegal drugs.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not clear when the CBP employment policy was revised, but the senator said his staff learned about it at a briefing last month.<\/p>\n

\u201cCBP briefers reported to my staff that this policy change was precipitated in part because of confusion between Federal law and state law in states where marijuana has been legalized,\u201d he wrote. \u201cHowever, as a Federal agency, CBP should ensure its personnel comply with Federal law regarding the illicit or otherwise prohibited use of controlled substances.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lankford said that CBP briefers reported that people who admit to past cannabis use \u201coften admit to other disqualifying criminal conduct,\u201d which he said is \u201cnot surprising\u201d because, regardless of state laws, \u201cusers often obtain \u2018gray market\u2019 marijuana sold by unlicensed sellers due to its lower price.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also alleged that licensed cannabis businesses are \u201coften are riddled with corruption,\u201d citing reports of issues in his state\u2019s medical marijuana program, where he said undocumented immigrants are used for labor and \u201ctrafficked into horrible situations at these grows.\u201d<\/p>\n

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I\u2019m calling on Acting Commissioner Miller to immediately reverse the policy that lowers the threshold for recent marijuana use for recruits.
Read more \"⬇\" pic.twitter.com\/cjAIXPUgEe<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Sen. James Lankford (@SenatorLankford) April 8, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Finally, the senator said in the letter, first reported<\/a> by Fox News, that there\u2019s a link between cannabis use and \u201cschizophrenia and psychosis,\u201d despite conflicting research about that association.<\/p>\n

\u201cGuidelines regarding suitability and background investigations for Federal employment note that the Federal government screens for psychological issues and for illicit drug usage,\u201d he said. \u201cFrequent, regular usage of marijuana in a state where marijuana has been legalized could significantly impact a Border Patrol recruit\u2019s trustworthiness, particularly given the incidence of psychosis among heavy marijuana users.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReducing the lookback on marijuana usage increases the possibility that a recruit to Border Patrol could have paid a transnational criminal organization for marijuana grown illicitly by illegal immigrant labor,\u201d Lankford said. \u201cThis situation directly contradicts Border Patrol\u2019s mission and could create concerning security and integrity issues for agents.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Governmental Operations and Border Management, my Subcommittee retains jurisdiction over Federal hiring and border management. I am gravely concerned that this policy change undermines the security and integrity of the Border Patrol workforce. Accordingly, I ask that you rescind this policy and restore the two-year lookback on marijuana usage among Border Patrol recruits.\u201d<\/p>\n

The senator then listed 11 questions he\u2019s asking CBP to answer by May 7, including inquires about evidence used to support the cannabis policy change, the impact on \u201cpolygraph passage rates\u201d and any other revisions to employment standards that have been implemented concerning past cannabis use.<\/p>\n

The overall message is clear, though. Despite CBP\u2019s longstanding recruitment issues and Lankford\u2019s recognition of the problem, including his push for border security legislation that he said would increase the agency\u2019s workforce, he thinks hiring people who might\u2019ve used cannabis three months ago instead of two years poses too grave a threat.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, last year, CBP cautioned employees, as well as their family members, against using even federally legal CBD products<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The federal legalization of hemp and its derivatives has also\u00a0created complications for CBP\u2019s enforcement activity<\/a>, leading officials to seek out portable marijuana analyzers to quickly identify cannabinoid profiles and help distinguish between marijuana and hemp.<\/p>\n

Lankford\u2019s opposition to policy change isn\u2019t especially surprising, as the senator has a longstanding reputation as a staunch prohibitionist. Last September, for example, he led a separate letter to the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), urging the agency\u2019s to \u201creject\u201d a recommendation to reschedule cannabis<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Read the senator\u2019s letter<\/a> to CBP on the agency\u2019s cannabis employment policy below:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Marijuana Company Claims DEA Review Process Is Unconstitutional In New Federal Lawsuit<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Photo courtesy of Martin Alonso<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The post GOP Senator Urges Border Patrol To \u2018Reverse\u2019 Marijuana Employment Policy Change, Arguing Loosening Rules \u2018Undermines\u2019 Security<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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\nRead More: GOP Senator Urges Border Patrol To \u2018Reverse\u2019 Marijuana Employment Policy Change, Arguing Loosening Rules \u2018Undermines\u2019 Security<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A GOP senator is calling on U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to \u201creverse\u201d its updated policy that narrows the window of employment ineligibility over past marijuana use from two years to three months, arguing that it \u201cundermines the security and integrity of the Border Patrol workforce\u201d and questioning theContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":73862,"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\/73861"}],"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=73861"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73861\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73863,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73861\/revisions\/73863"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73862"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73861"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73861"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73861"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}