The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act gained three new sponsors yesterday, bringing the total number to 79.
The MORE Act (H.R. 5601) is now sponsored by 37% of all Democrats in the House of Representatives. The measure was filed in September by Representative Jerrold Nadler (D) along with four cosponsors. The legislation has steadily gained new sponsors since being filed, with Representatives Kweisi Mfume (D-MD), Kathy Castor (D-FL) and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FL) signing on just yesterday.
The MORE Act is described by Rep. Nadler as “one of the most comprehensive marijuana reform bills ever introduced in the U.S. Congress”. The measure would decriminalize marijuana at the federal level and remove it entirely as a controlled substance, while establishing a federal marijuana tax that would apply to legal marijuana states.
The measure also “aims to correct the historical injustices of failed drug policies that have disproportionately impacted communities of color and low-income communities by requiring resentencing and expungement of prior convictions.”
The MORE Act would place a 5% excise tax on legal marijuana sales for the first two years, with it increasing to 8% by the fifth year.
The Act includes multiple provisions to protect marijuana consumers, including preventing them from being denied public benefits.
“After fifty years of the failed war on drugs, it is past time for the federal government to catch up with majority of states who have legalized cannabis in some form,” said Rep. Earl Blumenauer, Founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus who is retiring soon from Congress. “The MORE Act is the only comprehensive cannabis reform that has passed either chamber of Congress—twice. It is the gold-standard, reflecting the concerns of businesses, researchers and impacted communities alike.”
To view the text of the MORE Act, click here.
A different federal marijuana bill – the SAFER Banking Act – is sponsored by 34 of the Senate’s 100 members, and recently received approval through its initial committee. The measure would allow banks and other financial institutions to provide services to state-legal marijuana businesses.
