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The House of Representatives is expected to vote on a bill related to the legalization of marijuana in the U.S. next month, and while some say it’s unlikely to pass, if it does, it could have far-reaching implications.
If the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act takes effect, it would mean marijuana would no longer be on the list of illegal substances under the Controlled Substances Act, Insider reported. Congress has never voted on removing marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act.
While the MORE Act would decriminalize marijuana, states would each still have to vote on the legalization of marijuana, Politico reported.
In addition to simply decriminalizing marijuana, the MORE Act would expunge the criminal records of those convicted of or facing marijuana charges. More than 8.2 million people — largely of Black and Latinx populations — were incarcerated on marijuana-related charges between 2001 and 2010, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
Of those 8.2 million arrests, 88% were for simple marijuana possession, according to an ACLU analysis. Marijuana arrests account for more than half of all U.S. drug arrests.
The MORE Act would also allocate resources for communities affected by the war on drugs, ABC News reported.
“These steps are long overdue,” one of the bill’s cosponsors, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., said when he introduced the bill in November, according to ABC News. “For far too long, we have treated marijuana as a criminal justice problem instead of a matter of personal choice and public health. Whatever one’s views on the use of marijuana for recreational or medicinal purposes, arresting, prosecuting, and incarcerating users at the federal level is unwise and unjust.”
Pew Research Center and Gallup polls conducted last year found about two-thirds of Americans support the legalization of marijuana in the U.S., ABC News reported. Eleven states and Washington, D.C., have approved the legalization of marijuana for recreational use by adults; 33 states and the District of Columbia have approved it for medical use.
Democrats are more supportive of the legalization of marijuana than Republicans, the polls found.
The bill, which is cosponsored by more than 50 lawmakers, was passed by the House Judiciary Committee 24-10 in November, according to ABC News. If it passes the House, it would then move to the Senate.
Sen. Kamala Harris, the bill’s lead sponsor in the Senate, is also the Democratic nominee for vice president. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he does not plan to endorse the MORE Act.
Democratic presidential nominee and former vice president Joe Biden has expressed his support for decriminalizing marijuana and expunging possession charges from criminal records; however, he believes each state should decide on legalization, according to ABC News.
President Donald Trump says he is opposed to changing marijuana laws at the federal level.
He’s even gone so far as to suggest Republicans wanting to win elections shouldn’t put the issue of marijuana legalization on the ballot, according to ABC News: “The next time you run please don’t put marijuana on the ballot at the same time you’re running,” Trump said an Oshkosh, Wisconsin, rally earlier this month. “You brought out like a million people that nobody ever knew were coming out.”
Arizona and New Jersey will vote on the legalization of marijuana in November.
While the MORE Act is not the only bill that would remove marijuana as a Schedule I drug, it has garnered the most support thanks to its provisions for expunging records and creating grants for those negatively affected by criminal enforcement of marijuana laws, according to Politico.
Some also say this is the perfect time to be implementing such a change to marijuana laws.
“As people across the country protest racial injustices, there’s even greater urgency for Congress to seize this historic opportunity and finally align our cannabis laws with what the majority of Americans support, while ensuring restorative justice,” Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) said, according to Politico.
Cannabis advocates also have praised the upcoming vote.
“A floor vote on the bill would be the greatest federal cannabis reform accomplishment in over 80 years,” the Global Alliance for Cannabis Commerce said in a statement Friday, according to ABC News.
Do you think marijuana should be decriminalized or legalized at the federal level? Tell us your thoughts in the comments.
Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act of 2019 is H.R. 3884 in the U.S. House of Representatives. The MORE Act Senate bill is S. 2227.
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2 thoughts onHouse to Vote on Marijuana Decriminalization In September
Opioids come from a flower.
Poppy makes heroin.
Some plants are not meant to be touched.
They are from the Creator too.
Poison Ivy is one of them.
Careful while foraging.
We the People have been destroyed because of Opioids to the point they have to use Outside Freezers to keep the bodies. A PLANT does not do this. Our Creator Gave is this PLANT and some People decided to hide it from us. The end result are Deaths everywhere. People have been in prison because they used the PLANT Our Creator gave us. What kind of evil is it when people of color are the ones who have been destroyed in Prison because of a PLANT? Now is the Time for Change.