Cannabis Regulation and the MORE Act

Moving Forward! The first week of December may bring an historic vote in the United States House of Representatives. The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act or MORE Act is set to be brought to the floor. The bill was introduced in July of 2019 and passed the House Judiciary Committee in November of 2019 but stalled.

The MORE Act would remove cannabis from the list of Schedule 1 federally controlled substances and leave cannabis policy to the states. It would impose a 5% sales tax on cannabis products with proceeds placed into a trust fund to be used for educational training and substance abuse programs for those communities impacted by the war on drugs. The Small Business Administration would be permitted to release funds to cannabis-related businesses. Additionally, all marijuana convictions would be expunged, and sentencing hearings would be held for those incarcerated for marijuana related offenses.

While the bill has bipartisan support, and may pass the House, approval in the Senate is an unknown. Stay tuned!