Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
Congress has once again put the cannabis industry on pins and needles. On Wednesday night, the U.S. House Rules Committee blocked a floor vote to keep in place the Rohrabacher-Blumenauer Amendment (formerly known as Rohrabacher-Farr). This amendment blocks the Justice Department from using federal tax dollars to go after states that have legalized marijuana.
The rider has been included in budgets since 2014 and has allowed the cannabis industry to operate without being prosecuted by the Justice Department. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made it clear he can't stand being handcuffed in this manner and has wanted it reversed. This week's deal that President Trump made with the Democrats to extend the current spending budget to Dec. 15 has given the industry some time to maneuver and have the amendment added back into the budget.
Tom Angell, founder of the Marijuana Majority, noted that the issues aren't dead yet. "The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee added both the state medical cannabis protections and the veterans rider to its versions of spending bills this year," Angell said. "The matters will likely be resolved by a House-Senate conference committee that later merges the two chambers' bills together."
"Opposing seriously ill patients' access to medical cannabis is sick enough, but blocking the people's representatives from even being able to vote on the matter is just obscene," he added. "Forty-six states now allow some form of medical marijuana and polls consistently show that more than 90% of voters support the issue, but a small handful of Congressional 'leaders' decided behind closed doors to kill this amendment without due consideration. Marijuana reform opponents know that the only way they can impede our progress is by using dirty legislative tricks. But they won't be able to do this without people noticing."
In addition to the Rohrabacher-Blumenhauer amendment, other marijuana legislation also got the bounce. The McClintock-Polis amendment that would have protected adult-use marijuana in legalized states and a banking amendment that had been sponsored by Rep Denny Heck was also kept from being voted on.
Aaron Smith, executive director of the National Cannabis Industry Association, says nine out of 10 Americans support legal access to medical cannabis. "Voters of all political persuasions generally agree the federal government should not be using limited resources to interfere with state medical cannabis laws," says Smith. "Shutting down regulated medical cannabis businesses will result in licensed patients resorting to the criminal market to obtain their medicine."
Smith is hopeful that since the amendment is included in the Senate's Appropriations bill, both sides of the aisle will come together and renew the amendment. "Fortunately, the amendment is currently included in the Senate's Appropriations bill, so Congress still has a chance to protect patients and state-legal cannabis businesses in conference committee. We hope leaders on both sides of the aisle will work together to ensure this widely popular amendment is renewed in this year's spending package
The U.S. House Rules Committee moved on Wednesday evening to block floor consideration of an amendment to continue an existing rider preventing the Department of Justice from interfering with state medical marijuana laws.
The committee has repeatedly blocked cannabis amendments on recent spending bills, most recently in July when it ruled that a measure to allow military veterans to receive medical marijuana recommendations from U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs doctors was not in order.
Don Murphy, director of conservative outreach for the Marijuana Policy Project, said, "Unless Congress chooses the Senate budget version, millions of seriously ill patients and the legitimate businesses that provide them with safe access to their medicine will be at risk of prosecution. This vote is a slap in the face of patients, their families, their elected representatives, and the 10th Amendment."
Blumenauer and Rohrabacher released the following statement saying, "By blocking our amendment, Committee leadership is putting at risk the millions of patients who rely on medical marijuana for treatment, as well as the clinics and businesses that support them. This decision goes against the will of the American people, who overwhelmingly oppose federal interference with state marijuana laws. These critical protections are supported by a majority of our colleagues on both sides of the aisle. There's no question: If a vote were allowed, our amendment would pass on the House floor, as it has several times before."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Congress Puts Cannabis Industry On High Alert, Blocking A Vote
Author: Debra Borchardt
Contact: Contact Information
Photo Credit: Getty Images
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The rider has been included in budgets since 2014 and has allowed the cannabis industry to operate without being prosecuted by the Justice Department. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made it clear he can't stand being handcuffed in this manner and has wanted it reversed. This week's deal that President Trump made with the Democrats to extend the current spending budget to Dec. 15 has given the industry some time to maneuver and have the amendment added back into the budget.
Tom Angell, founder of the Marijuana Majority, noted that the issues aren't dead yet. "The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee added both the state medical cannabis protections and the veterans rider to its versions of spending bills this year," Angell said. "The matters will likely be resolved by a House-Senate conference committee that later merges the two chambers' bills together."
"Opposing seriously ill patients' access to medical cannabis is sick enough, but blocking the people's representatives from even being able to vote on the matter is just obscene," he added. "Forty-six states now allow some form of medical marijuana and polls consistently show that more than 90% of voters support the issue, but a small handful of Congressional 'leaders' decided behind closed doors to kill this amendment without due consideration. Marijuana reform opponents know that the only way they can impede our progress is by using dirty legislative tricks. But they won't be able to do this without people noticing."
In addition to the Rohrabacher-Blumenhauer amendment, other marijuana legislation also got the bounce. The McClintock-Polis amendment that would have protected adult-use marijuana in legalized states and a banking amendment that had been sponsored by Rep Denny Heck was also kept from being voted on.
Aaron Smith, executive director of the National Cannabis Industry Association, says nine out of 10 Americans support legal access to medical cannabis. "Voters of all political persuasions generally agree the federal government should not be using limited resources to interfere with state medical cannabis laws," says Smith. "Shutting down regulated medical cannabis businesses will result in licensed patients resorting to the criminal market to obtain their medicine."
Smith is hopeful that since the amendment is included in the Senate's Appropriations bill, both sides of the aisle will come together and renew the amendment. "Fortunately, the amendment is currently included in the Senate's Appropriations bill, so Congress still has a chance to protect patients and state-legal cannabis businesses in conference committee. We hope leaders on both sides of the aisle will work together to ensure this widely popular amendment is renewed in this year's spending package
The U.S. House Rules Committee moved on Wednesday evening to block floor consideration of an amendment to continue an existing rider preventing the Department of Justice from interfering with state medical marijuana laws.
The committee has repeatedly blocked cannabis amendments on recent spending bills, most recently in July when it ruled that a measure to allow military veterans to receive medical marijuana recommendations from U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs doctors was not in order.
Don Murphy, director of conservative outreach for the Marijuana Policy Project, said, "Unless Congress chooses the Senate budget version, millions of seriously ill patients and the legitimate businesses that provide them with safe access to their medicine will be at risk of prosecution. This vote is a slap in the face of patients, their families, their elected representatives, and the 10th Amendment."
Blumenauer and Rohrabacher released the following statement saying, "By blocking our amendment, Committee leadership is putting at risk the millions of patients who rely on medical marijuana for treatment, as well as the clinics and businesses that support them. This decision goes against the will of the American people, who overwhelmingly oppose federal interference with state marijuana laws. These critical protections are supported by a majority of our colleagues on both sides of the aisle. There's no question: If a vote were allowed, our amendment would pass on the House floor, as it has several times before."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Congress Puts Cannabis Industry On High Alert, Blocking A Vote
Author: Debra Borchardt
Contact: Contact Information
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Website: {{meta.title}}
