A Bill to End Federal Marijuana Prohibition Clears Key Vote
Marking the first time a Congressional Committee has approved a piece of legislation that would end the federal prohibition of marijuana (and adjacent iterations) in the USA’s history, the MORE Act (the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement Act) passed with a bipartisan vote of 24-10 today. Now that it’s passed the Judiciary Committee, the act will be presented to the House, wherein representatives will have the opportunity to push the bill forward or terminate it. As NORML (a national organization in favor of legalization) explains, this bill isn’t a watered-down iteration of what millions have hoped for: the bill “would remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act and impose a minor excise tax on the legal cannabis industry to pay for the expungement of criminal records,” and “provide pathways for opportunity and ownership in the emerging industry for those who have suffered most,” NORML Political Director Justin Strekal says. In the days leading up the vote, NORML facilitated the relaying of 60,000+ messages of support from constituents across the country. Read more there.
Via blog.norml.org link opens in a new window
