The House Passes the MORE Act and the Medical Marijuana Research Act. Will It Matter?
During the last two weeks, the U.S. House of Representatives passed two bills aimed at reforming marijuana laws, the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement Act (MORE Act) and the Medical Marijuana Research Act (MMJ Research Act). Since neither bill will be considered by the Senate in the present session of Congress, they will have to be reintroduced and pass both the House (again) and Senate in the next session of Congress. Will a new Congress be prepared to spend political capital on controversial marijuana reform with so many other important matters on the Congressional agenda?
Related Knowledge Center: Cannabis: a legal overview
Spurred by legalization approved by referenda in Colorado and Washington state in 2012, a growing number of states have legalized adult recreational use of cannabis — 14 (and the District of Columbia) to date, as well as an additional 20 that permit sale of cannabis prescribed for medicinal purposes. More are expected to follow: All cannabis legalization initiatives on the ballot in 2020 — four recreational and two medical — were approved by voters. Other states have taken the more limited step of decriminalization.
Meanwhile, the conflict between these state laws and federal policy — cannabis remains illegal under federal law — remains unresolved: the Justice and Treasury departments have adopted informal policies of non-interference with state laws.