The “Stop Pot Act” has been introduced in the United States House of Representatives.
Filed by North Carolina Congressman Chuck Edwards, the Stop Pot Act would withhold federal funding from states and tribes that have legalized recreational marijuana.
“The laws of any government should not infringe on the overall laws of our nation, and federal funds should not be awarded to jurisdictions that willfully ignore federal law”, Edwards said in a press statement. “During a time when our communities are seeing unprecedented crime, drug addiction, and mental illness, the Stop Pot Act will help prevent even greater access to drugs and ease the strain placed on our local law enforcement and mental health professionals who are already stretched thin.”
Specifically the proposal would withhold 10% of federal highway funds from states and tribes that violate the federal Controlled Substances Act, which currently considers marijuana a schedule 1 drug, putting it in the same category as heroin and making it illegal for all purposes.
Introduction of the bill comes shortly after the US Department of Health sent a letter to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) requesting that marijuana be rescheduled from schedule 1 to schedule III, effectively legalizing it for prescription use across the nation.
According to two separate polls released earlier this year, 64% of adults in the United States support marijuana being legalized for recreational use.
