Earlier this month the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act passed in the House, although it's not expected to do very well in the Senate. Gretchen Whitmer's support of the bill. Good News for American Businesses: H1-B Denial Rates Plummet Under USCIS Extends Comment Period for Proposed Fee Increases, OFCCP Rescinds Trump-Era Religious Exemption Rule. Sign up for Verge Deals to get deals on products we've tested sent to your inbox daily. . RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) The North Carolina Senate is scheduled to vote this week whether to legalize medical marijuana, and House leaders say there's growing support this year for getting a bill to the governor to sign. Do you have information you want to share with HuffPost? Finally, decriminalizing cannabis would allow cannabis providers to practice safer business practices and partake in federally regulated business activities. "So, for us, it is a huge accomplishment.". All Rights Reserved, By submitting your email, you agree to our. Senate Democrats are expected to bring forward their own measure in the weeks ahead, after previously releasing a draft of the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act (CAOA)last year. The survey found that 83 percent of Democrats, 71 percent of independents and 50 percent of Republicans back legalization. The bill is the same version passed in 2020, with no substantive changes, so hopefully everyone who voted last time will vote in favor again., House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), a sponsor of the bill, says the recent wave of state legalization efforts has put pressure on Congress to act. Only three Republicans, Brian Mast, Tom McClintock, and Matt Gaetz, supported the measure. Joshua Miller works alongside Renautt through Unity Fund. Offers may be subject to change without notice. During a hearing for the MORE Act before the House Rules Committee on Wednesday, Chairman Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) He is also the assistant district attorney for Oakland County. The bill passed with a bipartisan vote of 23 in favor and now heads to the Michigan House for consideration. With the midterm elections over, Democrats have found enough Republicans ready to join them in advancing basic LGBTQ rights. Transgender people are just trying to live their lives like anybody else," Rogers said. This week, a closer look at legislation that could have national implications. It was the second time in U.S. history when the House voted on. For each year thereafter up until year five, the rate would increase 1% annually. ), a member of GOP leadership, cast doubt on its chances. Ill be voting when the votes are called, he told HuffPost. The margin of victory was smaller this year, as opposed to 228-164 the first time the MORE Act passed the House. Congress has previously attempted to address this issue via the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act (H.R. When asked about the MORE Act, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said President Joe Biden agrees with most Democratic lawmakers that our current marijuana laws are not working, but did not specify if Biden supports the MORE Act. The bill passed the House in 2020 but saw no action in the Senate, where 60 votes are needed to pass most legislation. At Strassburger McKenna Gutnick & Gefsky our healthcare attorneys understand these issues and remain at the forefront of this constantly evolving profession. It passed the House 220 yea votes to 204 nay votes. Heres how. The U.S. House last month voted to rescind the District's non-citizen voting law, but the Senate failed to act before the deadline. Amendment No. Union rep: Employees reporting illness after working on cleanup for East Senate sends bill nullifying Biden's ESG investing rule to president's desk, China, Belarus call for cease-fire, negotiations in Ukraine. Any bill not signed into law by the time Congress adjourns on January 3 will have to be reintroduced, so that most likely will be the fate for the MORE Act or any other prominent. 2023 - Arkansas State Legislature - webmaster@arkleg.state.ar.us. The NLR does not wish, nor does it intend, to solicit the business of anyone or to refer anyone to an attorney or other professional. Same-sex marriage has been legal nationwide since 2015, when the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples are guaranteed the fundamental right to marry under the Constitution. Second, this vote puts the 435 members of the House on record. Then, in September, it again cleared the sponsor's panel for the current. The Senate majority leader has said he is reaching across party lines to gain support for the bill, but its chances seem slim. This bill would end the federal ban, but leave legalization up to the states. HuffPost's top politics stories, straight to your inbox. In that instance, senators offered up 43 amendments for a vote, leading to a session. For far too long, we have treated marijuana as a criminal justice problem, instead of as a matter of personal choice and public health., Troy Carter, a Democrat from Louisiana, said that 91% of Americans want some form of cannabis to be legal and that there are more important priorities cops should be focused on. "We have a historic opportunity today to right a wrong that should have been righted decades ago," Sen. Mallory McMorrow, D-Royal Oak, said. Congress will vote on the MORE Act to decriminalize marijuana Friday. So who are they? This is misguided; this is wrong., Andy Biggs, a Republican from Arizona, referred to the bill as a piece of garbage, claiming it will legalize activity and businesses controlled by international drug cartels. Draft the To Each Their Own: Agency Must Consider Experience of Each Partner in CMS Updates List of Telehealth Services for CY 2023, What You Need to Know About the New Tariffs on Imports from Russia. 2023 Vox Media, LLC. Will Democrats keep their promise to decriminalize marijuana? In this Congress, we really havent been able to do that in the Senate, because the CAOA hasnt been introduced yet. Two Democrats, Henry Cuellar and Christopher Pappas, opposed the MORE Act. Nancy Mace, the freshman representative from South Carolinas coastal swing district spanning from Charleston to Hilton Head, introduced the States Reform Act, a bill that would end the federal governments 85-year prohibition on marijuana, last year. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), a key centrist, told The Hill he is very much supportive of medical marijuana, though he still has concerns about legalizing recreational marijuana.. MORE Act Passes House Again. It was not taken up by the Senate, which had at the time been led by Republicans. Oscar Renautt did his part by starting the Unity Fund, an organization that helps put gay and trans people in office. These four House Republicans broke with the GOP to oppose inflation estimates McCarthy, GOP pump brakes on release of Jan. 6 footage to Tucker Carlson, Christie: Trump grand jury foreperson did a lot of damage to case. In July 2021, protestors gather to protest criminalization of cannabis and promote the MORE Act, to be voted on in the House next week. Do you have information you want to share with HuffPost. He also said that he used to support tough-on-marijuana policies earlier in his political career. The Cannabis Administrative and Opportunity (CAO) Act, the Senate's comprehensive marijuana bill, has yet to be filed in 2022. Attorney Advertising Notice: Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. It will be the first time since the passage of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 that a Congressional chamber has ever voted on legislation to remove marijuana from its prohibitive classification under federal law. Abusive Arbitrage Devices Its Time to Get Reacquainted (Episode 2 Healthcare Law at Strassburger McKenna Gutnick & Gefsky, How Modern Manufacturing Plants Can Protect Against Ransomware, Cyberattacks, FTC Will Host May 23, 2023, Workshop on Recyclable Claims and the Green Guides. As usual, the votes for the MORE Act closely followed party lines on both sides, 220-204 in favor of Democrats, repeating the scenario seen in December 2020. Litigation Setback for Employers Under Illinois Biometric Information Senate Committee Holds Hearing on Future of Low Carbon Transportation North Carolina Senate Passes Compassionate Care Act at Exactly 4:20 States and Feds Signal Big Changes to Telehealth Prescribing. WASHINGTON The House passed legislation Friday that would legalize marijuana nationwide, eliminating criminal penalties for anyone who manufactures, distributes or possesses the substance.. The bill would end federal prohibition of marijuana by removing it from the list of banned controlled substances. The Final CCPA Regulations: What You Need To Know, Are College Athletes Students or Employees? The bill the Senate will consider, the North Carolina Compassionate Care Act would . The Community Reinvestment Grant Program would provide eligible entities with funds to administer services for individuals adversely impacted by the War on Drugs. As a reminder, we've covered the topic legalization or decriminalization of cannabis in the past, here are a couple of our more recent posts: Marijuana Legalization, Criminal Justice Reform, and our Long Overdue Reckoning Guest post by NORML, Lets do marijuana legalization the right way a closer look at KY HB 136 and SB 80, Colorado Gov Given Power to Expunge Marijuana Crimes, 8 Years after State Legalization, and Sessions versus Marijuana: What Are His Options?. Five Republicans voted in favor of it and 158 voted against passing it. Democratic Senators Dianne Feinstein and Brian Schatz, and Republican Senator Chuck Grassley sponsored the bill. Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic Caucus chair, said there is a mass incarceration problem in the U.S, fueled by the prison industrial complex in America. This website uses cookies to allow you to log into the, House -- Returned by the Committee Do Pass. Confidentiality and Non-Disparagement Agreements with Non-Supervisory USCIS Confirms It Will Accept Employment-Based I-485 Applications New Jersey Enacts Bill of Rights for Temporary Workers, DOJ Implements Nationwide Voluntary Self-Disclosure Program. Adams, the bill's lead sponsor . , but that proposal stalled in the Senate, where some Republicans raised concerns that it would stifle religious liberty. Our Calvin Cutler reports. "We are not a threat to anybody.". The MORE Act was passed last year in the House as well, but failed to gain any traction in the Senate. The Senate did not give the MORE Act a hearing or a vote in 2020. The reality presents a stark contrast from the Democratic-led House, where members this month voted 220-204, largely along party lines, to pass the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, which would nix marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances, expunge certain marijuana-related convictions and impose a tax on marijuana sales to help communities disproportionately impacted by the nations war on drugs. The House already passed this bill to remove cannabis from its list of federally controlled substances back in 2020, but the Senate didn't move on the bill within that legislative cycle. This would only be the second time in history that a federal marijuana legalization bill would reach the House floor for voting. Steven Nelson. The MORE Act will need 60 votes to pass the Senate, meaning the majority of Democrats and 10 or more Republicans. Sen. Roy Blunt (Mo. For instance, in 2021, the White House screened staff for marijuana and asked some who tested positive to resign or work remotely. 1. In specific circumstances, the services of a professional should be sought. Nota Bene Episode 160: European Update: Oliver Heinisch and Scott Federal Communications Commission to Consider Rules and Proposals to Whats the Standard? Despite the fact that the vast majority of Americans are in favor of legal marijuana, there were plenty of naysayers in the House. 1996) to no avail. Sessions versus Marijuana: What Are His Options? The Basics of Californias Outside Salesperson Exemption. Reminder: High-Earning Exempt Professionals Must Be Paid a "True Gold Dome Report Legislative Day 24 (2023). Copyright 2023 Market Realist. Not every Senate Democrat supports legalization and if the three House Republicans who voted for MORE are a barometer, it wont get much support from the GOP. 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