The Marijuana Justice Coalition (MJC), a broad coalition of national advocacy organizations convened by the Drug Policy Alliance, including the American Civil Liberties Union and Human Rights Watch sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) on Tuesday, calling for a floor vote on HR 3617: Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act reported Marijuana Moment.
Members of the House Judiciary Committee advanced the bill sponsored by Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), in September.
The bill was approved 26-15, with 24 Democrats joined by two Republicans.
The MORE Act repeals the long-standing federal prohibition of marijuana by removing it from the Controlled Substances Act — thereby ending the state/federal conflict over cannabis policies and providing state governments with greater authority to regulate marijuana-related activities, including retail sales.
“This legislation would end federal marijuana prohibition, address the collateral consequences of federal marijuana criminalization, and take steps to ensure the legal marketplace is diverse and inclusive,” the letter states.
“Mass criminalization and over-enforcement of drug law violations have devastated the social and economic fabrics of entire communities (...) And while Black, Latino, and Indigenous people have carried the brunt of marijuana criminalization, they have been shut out of the regulated marijuana marketplace due to these very same criminal records in addition to financial barriers to entry.”
The Coalition praised the MORE Act for its “comprehensive approach,” as the bill would declassify marijuana as a controlled substance under federal law, expunge marijuana convictions, and reduce marijuana sentences.
“The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the MORE Act would have reduced time served by 73,000 person-years, over the 2021-2030 period, among existing and future incarcerated individuals. The bill, after solving the industry’s 280E tax issue, would also place a minor initial five percent federal excise tax on marijuana sales at the manufacturer level in order to fund services in communities adversely impacted by drug prohibition and to build up Small Business Administration programming to support a more diverse and inclusive marketplace with local ownership,” explained the letter.
Photo By Lelen Ruete.
