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On Friday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to approve the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act, a bill that would decriminalize marijuana federally. The legislation passed 220 to 204, largely along party lines, with Democrats in support and Republicans opposed.
If it were to pass the Senate, the legislation would remove cannabis from the federal Controlled Substances Act, as well as expunge or resentence incarcerated people with nonviolent cannabis convictions.
Its fate in the Senate is uncertain as It’s unclear whether the measure has enough support to clear a filibuster – which requires 60 votes – and Democratic Senators Joe Manchin (W. Va) and Jeanne Shaheen (NH) have both expressed skepticism about legalizing cannabis federally, according to The Hill.
It’s the second time in 16 months that Congress has voted to repeal cannabis prohibition. In 2020, the U.S. House voted to decriminalize cannabis for the first time in its history, but the effort was stalled in the Republican-controlled Senate.
While many states have legalized cannabis for adult use in recent years, an end to federal prohibition would eliminate the conflict between federal and state laws, and open the industry up to banking and the transportation of cannabis across state lines, for example.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement, “There’s so many discussions that have gone on over the years about the use of marijuana or cannabis or whatever. The fact is, it exists. It’s being used. We’ve got to address how it is treated legally.”
Representative Jerrold Nadler, the author of the new bill, told ABC News “More than anything else, the MORE Act is about ending and reversing decades of failed federal policy that has taken a heavy toll on too many people across this country, with a disproportionate impact on communities of color.”
According to a Congressional Budget Office analysis, the passage of the Act would increase revenues by over $8 billion in ten years. Furthermore, a recent Pew Research poll found that the vast majority of Americans support cannabis legalization.
