The following information was released by the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).
Momentum continues to grow for comprehensive marijuana policy reform as Congress prepares to vote for only second time in history to repeal federal prohibition
WASHINGTON, DC: Members of the US House of Representatives have announced that they will hold a floor vote next week on the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act. The MORE Act, or H.R. 3617, removes marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act, facilitates expungement and resentencing for nonviolent federal marijuana convictions, promotes diverse participation in the regulated cannabis industry, and helps repair the racially and economically disparate harms caused by our nation’s disastrous prohibition policies.
“Advancing this legislation to deschedule marijuana and to help those individuals and communities that have borne the brunt of America’s failed prohibition is pivotal,” said NORML’s Political Director Morgan Fox. “More than two-thirds of Americans support repealing the federal prohibition of marijuana prohibition, and they deserve to know where our elected officials stand on this issue.
“On behalf of cannabis consumers nationwide and the people who have been victimized and marginalized by our misguided federal marijuana laws, we thank House Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Hoyer, House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler, Reps. Earl Blumenauer, Jim Clyburn, Hakeem Jeffries, Barbara Lee, Sheila Jackson Lee, Ed Perlmutter, Nydia Velasquez, and many others for their steadfast support for comprehensive marijuana policy reform and for their efforts to bring this legislation to a vote.”
This legislation was previously approved in the House in December of 2020, but it did not receive a hearing in the Senate. Next week’s vote will mark only the second time in more than 50 years that a chamber of Congress has revisited the classification of cannabis as a federally prohibited substance.
NORML advocates for changes in public policy so that the responsible possession and use of marijuana by adults is no longer subject to criminal penalties. NORML further advocates for a regulated commercial cannabis market so that activities involving the for-profit production and retail sale of cannabis and cannabis products are safe, transparent, consumer-friendly, and are subject to state and/or local licensure. Finally, NORML advocates for additional changes in legal and regulatory policies so that those who use marijuana responsibly no longer face either social stigma or workplace discrimination, and so that those with past criminal records for marijuana-related violations have the opportunity to have their records automatically expunged.
Find out more at norml.org and read our Fact Sheets on the most common misconceptions and myths regarding reform efforts around the country
- Nebraska medical cannabis backers file legal challenge to petition processSupporters of medical marijuana in Nebraska have launched a legal challenge to the state’s requirement that 5% of registered voters in at least 38 counties sign a petition to get the measure before voters on the ballot.
- N.J. lawmakers seek to curb cannabis useAs New Jersey nears the end of its first month of legal recreational marijuana sales, lawmakers have introduced a series of bills aimed at restricting what types of workers can use cannabis off the job.
- Missouri House votes to require disclosure of medical cannabis ownership recordsThe Missouri House voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to require state regulators to disclose ownership information for businesses granted medical marijuana licenses that the state has withheld from public view.
- Nebraska medical cannabis group calls for ‘grassroots’ effort after losing donorUnable to raise $1 million to replace funds from a major donor who died, Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana issued a plea Friday for supporters of the cause to take up petitions and gather signatures.
- Lawmaker says GOP resistance may doom Missouri cannabis legalizationA Republican lawmaker pushing legislation to legalize recreational marijuana in Missouri says his bill is in jeopardy because of stall tactics by his GOP colleagues and the insistence of the House floor leader that it include license caps.
- SD cannabis legalization campaign to submit signatures for NovemberToday, South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws, the political group that led the 2020 campaign to legalize cannabis in South Dakota, submitted petitions to place an adult-use cannabis legalization initiated measure on the November 2022 ballot.
- NH senate votes down legal cannabis bills, ending chances for 2022The New Hampshire Senate voted down two bills to legalize cannabis Thursday, likely heading off the last opportunities for legalization in the Granite State this year.
- Last Prisoner Project: Taking Real Action to Help Cannabis Prisoners“It really remains a fundamental injustice,” said Stephen Post, of America’s criminalization of cannabis. “We’re really helping to try to turn around those injustices.” Post works as a campaign manager for Last Prisoner Project (LPP), a nonprofit assisting cannabis prisoners.
- Federal attempts to legalize cannabis flail, while public support growsAcross the country, attitudes toward cannabis are becoming more permissive and accepting, but partisan gridlock in Congress virtually ensures that legislation to decriminalize marijuana will languish and die in the U.S. Senate.
- Wisconsin GOP medical cannabis bill gets 4/20 public hearingThe bill, authored by Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Irma), would legalize medicinal use of cannabis under specific conditions. Patients would need to be registered, and the cannabis must be in the form of a liquid, oil, pill, tincture or topical ointment.