Will 2019 be the year that Congress blocks the federal government from enforcing prohibition in legal marijuana states? A bipartisan team of lawmakers in the House and Senate are optimistic that it will, and they introduced legislation April 4, 2019, to accomplish that goal.
Democratic Rep. Earl Blumenauer of Oregon and Republican Rep. David Joyce of Ohio filed the Strengthening the Tenth Amendment Through Entrusting States (STATES) Act, appearing alongside Democratic co-sponsors Reps. Barbara Lee of California and Joe Neguse of Colorado during a press conference. Republican Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado and Democrat Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts filed the Senate version of the bill.
Watch the press conference below:
STATES Act Introduction https://t.co/vQMd6appgZ
— Earl Blumenauer (@repblumenauer) April 4, 2019
The legislation would amend the Controlled Substances Act to protect people complying with state legal cannabis laws from federal intervention, and the sponsors are hoping that the bipartisan and bicameral nature of the bill will advance it through the 116th Congress.
President Donald Trump voiced support for a previous version of the legislation in 2018.
“I’ve been working on this for four decades. I could not be more excited,” Blumenauer told Marijuana Moment in a phone interview.
I’ve been working on this for four decades. I could not be more excited. Click To Tweet
While other legislation under consideration such as bills to secure banking access for cannabis businesses or study the benefits of marijuana for veterans are “incremental steps that are going to make a huge difference,” the STATES Act is “a landmark,” he said.
The congressman said it will take some time before the bill gets a full House vote, however. Democratic Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts recently suggested that the legislation would advance within “weeks,” but Blumenauer said it will “be a battle to get floor time” and he stressed the importance of ensuring that legislators get the chance to voice their concerns and get the answers they need before putting it before the full chamber.
“We want to raise the comfort level that people have. We want to do it right,” he said. “There’s no reason that we have to make people feel like they’re crowded or rushed.”
Asked whether he’d had conversations with Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California about moving cannabis bills forward this Congress, Blumenauer said there’s been consistent communication between their offices and that the speaker is “very sympathetic” to the issue and “understands the necessity of reform.”
There are 26 initial co-sponsors — half Democrats and half Republicans — on the House version. Democratic California Reps. Ro Khanna and Lou Correa, and Colorado Rep. Ed Perlmutter, along with Republican Reps. Matt Gaetz of Florida and Don Young of Alaska are among those supporters. The previous version ended the 115th Congress with 45 co-sponsors.
On the Senate side, there are 10 lawmakers initially signed on: Warren and Gardner, along with Democratic Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, Michael Bennet of Colorado, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Ron Wyden of Oregon; across the aisle, Republican co-sponsors are Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, and Rand Paul of Kentucky.
For the most part, the latest versions of the legislation are identical to the previous Congress’ bills, though there are two exceptions. Previously, there was a provision exempting hemp from the definition of marijuana, but that was removed — presumably because it is no longer needed in light of the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which federally legalized the crop.
The bigger change is that the new version contains a section that requires the Government Accountability Office to conduct a study on the “effects of marihuana legalization on traffic safety.”
Among other data points, the office would be directed to collect info on “traffic crashes, fatalities, and injuries in states that have legalized marihuana use, including whether States are able to accurately evaluate marihuana impairment in those incidents.” A report on those effects would be due one year after the law is enacted.
“This bipartisan legislation signals the eventual end of marijuana prohibition at the federal level,” Steve Hawkins, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project, said in a press release. “It reflects the position held by a strong majority of Americans that states should be able to develop their own cannabis policies without interference from the federal government.”
“It also reflects the position President Trump took on marijuana policy throughout his campaign, and we are hopeful that he will have the opportunity to sign it into law,” Hawkins said. “While we look forward to the day when Congress is ready to enact more comprehensive reform, we fully embrace the states’ rights approach proposed by this bill.”
The National Cannabis Industry Association, which represents marijuana businesses, also backs the legislation.
“The STATES Act is being reintroduced at a key moment when bipartisan support for cannabis policy reform is at historic levels in both chambers of Congress and among the general public,” said Aaron Smith, the group’s executive director. “Regulating cannabis is working well in the states that have enacted more sensible policies, and legitimate businesses are creating jobs and generating revenue while helping to replace the illicit market. Those businesses shouldn’t have to worry about being treated like criminals by the federal government and deserve clarity that is set in law as opposed to the whims of federal prosecutors.”
This article was republished from Marijuana Moment under a content syndication agreement. Read the original article here.
