The US House of Representatives Passes the MORE Act

The fate of cannabis in the USA hangs in the balance with the opportunity for the MORE Act to be put in place. The MORE Act, or the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act, is set to decriminalize marijuana at a federal level. The act would see the drug being removed from the list of scheduled substances, where it has been for the last 4 decades. However, it would also serve to allow for the expungement of prior cannabis related convictions, which have affected millions of lives and families across the country.

A Revolutionary Bill

The bill was introduced in 2019, and it passed in the House of Representatives on December 4, 2020, with a vote of 228-164. This was a landslide and landmark victory, with it being the first time any chamber of congress has approved any kind of legislation related to the end of marijuana prohibition at a federal level. While the drug is legal for medical use in many states, such as with the Illinois medical marijuana program, and even legal for recreational use in 15 of them, it is still illegal at a federal level. There is limited research on the use and revenue of the drug across the country, but this bill would be a huge step forward. 

A Cash Injection

The final piece of the bill, which relates to the idea of lost revenue, is that it would introduce a 5% tax on marijuana products. This federal tax would help fund both criminal and social reforms in various ways, through things like literacy programs and financial aid to those affected by criminalisation of marijuana. This would present a massive boost to the economy as well, something that Covid-19 has shown to be very much in need.

Arrest Numbers

With police making over 600,000 arrests every year for marijuana convictions, with a massive proportion of these being small, one-time possession busts, it is no wonder that many believe this act could free the lives of so many people that have had theirs destroyed by their personal marijuana use. It would also legally protect those that do use it, in cases where housing for example is being denied due to their use. The implications of the bill would thus be huge, but is it likely to pass at the Senate?

Will it Pass?

At the time of writing, the Republicans still hold a majority, albeit a narrow one, in the Senate. While the bill passed the House of Representatives with ease, getting through the senate requires a bill to be essentially bipartisan. This is not the case with the MORE Act, as it has a lot of opposition from the Republican side. Thus, the Democrats are counting on a vote in Georgia to flip the scales and allow them to use the President of the Senate to their tie-breaking advantage. This, should all of the Democrats vote for the bill and all Republicans against, is the only hope for this bill to actually make it into the legal system.