As more states legalize, there has been a growing wave of acceptance for both medical and adult-use cannabis across the nation. It can’t be ignored that 2/3rds of people in the United States now support the federal legalization of cannabis.
While many lawmakers agree that the federal government should legalize cannabis, it’s no easy process to move such legislation through the proper channels in Washington, D.C. Nonetheless, as we make our way into 2022, there have already been some exciting developments regarding federal legalization.
In fact, the House recently passed multiple bills that seek to both decriminalize cannabis and open the door for more medical marijuana research.
Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act
In early April 2022, the House of Representatives passed historic legislation known as the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act. According to CNBC, the MORE Act seeks to “legalize marijuana nationwide, [while] eliminating criminal penalties for anyone who manufactures, distributes or possesses the substance.”
While the House passed the MORE Act with a margin of 220 to 204, it passed almost entirely along party lines. In fact, only 3 Republicans voted for the legislation, while the other 217 votes were from Democrats.
It’s also important to note that the same act passed in the House in 2020, but never made it through the Senate. Also, 5 Republicans backed the Bill in 2020.
The Medical Marijuana Research Act
In an interesting turn of events, just a few days after the House of Representatives passed the MORE Act, they also voted in favor of the Medical Marijuana Research Act. While the MORE Act does not have bipartisan support, the Medical Marijuana Research Act is backed by both Democrats and Republicans.
The House passed the Medical Marijuana Research Act with a vote of 343-75.
The main focus of the Bill is to make it easier for scientist to study medical cannabis. Both Democrats and Republicans agree cannabis legalization is here to stay and we need to educate ourselves on the medical applications of the plant.
What Does this Mean for Cannabis Research?
With the Medical Marijuana Research Act, scientists can get approved to research medical marijuana without going through extensive red tape. The Bill also gives scientists the ability to procure cannabis from legal state dispensaries for research purposes.
Other noteworthy developments with the Medical Marijuana Research Act deal with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) licensing for cultivation purposes. The Bill asks that the DEA does not put a limit on the number of cultivation licenses that can be issued for medical marijuana research.
How can Sapphire Risk help?
Tony Gallo and the team at Sapphire Risk Advisory Group has over 30 years of security experience and expertise. Follow us on social media to stay up to date with federal cannabis law updates!
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