The 119th Congress has included several marijuana and hemp bills, ranging from full federal descheduling to tightly focused veterans’ access measures and a crackdown on intoxicating hemp products.
Below is a rundown of the major cannabis-focused legislation introduced in 2025, ordered by the number of congressional sponsors as of late 2025.
Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act (H.R. 5068)
The MORE Act would remove marijuana from the federal Controlled Substances Act, effectively ending federal prohibition and leaving core policy decisions to the states. It pairs descheduling with automatic expungement for many federal marijuana offenses, creates a federal excise tax, and directs revenue toward community reinvestment, small-business support and services in communities hit hardest by past enforcement. As of December, the bill has 60 total sponsors from 28 states and D.C., making it the most heavily backed cannabis bill of the year.
STATES 2.0 Act (H.R. 2934)
The STATES 2.0 Act, led by Representative Dave Joyce, would bar federal enforcement against individuals and businesses that comply with state or tribal marijuana laws. It explicitly allows interstate commerce between legal jurisdictions, lets marijuana businesses claim standard federal tax deductions currently blocked by 280E, and sets the stage for a federal regulatory framework with relatively low tax rates. As of fall 2025, the bill has 8 sponsors, giving this bipartisan measure the second-largest coalition among 2025 cannabis legislation.
Veterans Equal Access Act (H.R. 1384)
The Veterans Equal Access Act would finally allow Department of Veterans Affairs health care providers to discuss state medical marijuana programs with their patients and to complete the state paperwork needed for veterans to participate. In other words, it removes the federal gag rule that currently prevents VA clinicians from formally recommending or certifying marijuana use, even in fully legal medical states. The bill has 2 total sponsors and continues a multi-Congress push to normalize medical marijuana access for veterans.
Veterans Cannabis Use for Safe Healing Act (H.R. 966)
This companion veterans’ bill takes a different slice of the same problem. The Veterans Cannabis Use for Safe Healing Act prohibits the VA from denying any benefit solely because a veteran participates in a state-approved marijuana program. It also directs VA providers to talk with participating veterans about their marijuana use, adjust treatment plans accordingly and record that use in medical charts, making cannabis a routine part of clinical conversations instead of a legal landmine. The bill also has 2 sponsors so far in the 119th Congress.
Evidence-Based Drug Policy Act of 2025 (H.R. 3082)
The Evidence-Based Drug Policy Act doesn’t change marijuana’s schedule directly, but it targets a key barrier to reform: the requirement that the Office of National Drug Control Policy formally oppose legalization. The bill, introduced by Cannabis Caucus co-chairs Dina Titus and Ilhan Omar, would repeal language forcing ONDCP to take an anti-legalization stance and allow federal drug policy to be shaped around data rather than a baked-in prohibitionist default. It currently has 2 sponsors—modest numbers, but symbolically important for shifting the federal research and messaging apparatus around cannabis.
Military Construction & VA Appropriations Marijuana Amendment
This amendment would have prohibited the Department of Veterans Affairs from denying benefits to veterans who use state-legal medical marijuana. It also would have allowed VA clinicians to discuss medical marijuana with patients without fear of violating federal policy. The proposal cleared both the House and Senate during consideration of the Military Construction and VA appropriations bill, reflecting significant bipartisan support. However, it was removed during the final conference committee negotiations and did not appear in the enacted legislation.
Federal Hemp THC Ban Amendment (Agriculture Appropriations)
The agriculture appropriations amendment imposes a sweeping nationwide ban on consumable hemp products containing any detectable THC, including delta-8, delta-10, THCA and similar compounds. After months of negotiations, the amendment was ultimately folded into the broader government-shutdown-ending spending package and signed into law, securing its place as one of the most consequential federal hemp policies in years. The measure includes a one-year enforcement delay to give businesses time to adjust, but once active, it will shut down the legal market for intoxicating hemp products in all 50 states.
PREPARE Act
The PREPARE Act focuses on federal readiness for the post-prohibition era. It calls for interagency planning around marijuana regulation, directs federal agencies to study potential tax structures and public health frameworks, and urges the development of a coordinated transition plan if marijuana is descheduled. Although often discussed in reform circles, the bill currently has a limited number of sponsors compared to major measures like the MORE Act or STATES 2.0 Act.
No Deductions for Marijuana Businesses Act
This measure addresses the long-controversial IRS rule known as 280E. Rather than ending the restriction, the No Deductions for Marijuana Businesses Act would explicitly maintain the prohibition on standard federal tax deductions for any business trafficking in Schedule I or II controlled substances. In effect, the bill reinforces 280E and keeps marijuana businesses from deducting ordinary expenses. It has only a small cluster of sponsors and stands in contrast with reform-oriented bills seeking to eliminate 280E for state-legal operators.
Hemp Economic Mobilization Plan (HEMP) Act
The HEMP Act proposes a new federal definition of legal hemp, raising the allowable THC threshold and updating testing rules to reduce crop failure rates. It would also clarify legal parameters for hemp-derived products and set consistent national standards intended to stabilize the hemp supply chain. While viewed as helpful by many hemp growers, the bill has only a modest number of sponsors so far in 2025.
Marijuana 1-to-3 Act
The Marijuana 1-to-3 Act would move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act. Rescheduling to Schedule III would eliminate the impact of 280E on legal businesses, expand research access and recognize marijuana’s accepted medical use while still maintaining federal oversight. The bill provides a more incremental reform approach compared to full descheduling. As of late 2025, it has four bipartisan sponsors.
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