the MORE Act: The House is Moving to Decriminalize Marijuana. What Happens Next?

On April 1, 2022, the United States House of Representatives passed the 'MORE' Act or Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act. Considered a watershed moment for federal cannabis legalization in the United States, the bill would effectively decriminalize cannabis possession and usage if signed into law. Despite a long road ahead before that will happen, the bill's passage through the lower level of Congress shows just how far the acceptance of marijuana as a medicinal treatment and recreational drug has come.  

What Does the Bill Say? 

The MORE Act is the latest victory for medical and recreational cannabis proponents. The following is what the bill entails, pulled directly from the congress.gov website: 

This bill decriminalizes marijuana. 

Specifically, it removes marijuana from the list of scheduled substances under the Controlled Substances Act and eliminates criminal penalties for an individual who manufactures, distributes, or possesses marijuana. 

The bill also makes other changes, including the following: 

• replaces statutory references to marijuana and marihuana with cannabis, 

• requires the Bureau of Labor Statistics to regularly publish demographic data on cannabis business owners and employees, 

• establishes a trust fund to support various programs and services for individuals and businesses in communities impacted by the war on drugs, 

• imposes an excise tax on cannabis products produced in or imported into the United States and an occupational tax on cannabis production facilities and export warehouses, 

• makes Small Business Administration loans and services available to entities that are cannabis-related legitimate businesses or service providers, 

• prohibits the denial of federal public benefits to a person on the basis of certain cannabis-related conduct or convictions, 

• prohibits the denial of benefits and protections under immigration laws on the basis of a cannabis-related event (e.g., conduct or a conviction), 

• establishes a process to expunge convictions and conduct sentencing review hearings related to federal cannabis offenses, 

• directs the Government Accountability Office to study the societal impact of state legalization of recreational cannabis, 

• directs the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to study methods for determining whether a driver is impaired by marijuana, 

• directs the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to study the impact of state legalization of recreational cannabis on the workplace, and 

• directs the Department of Education to study the impact of state legalization of recreational cannabis on schools and school-aged children. 

Legitimizing Marijuana Businesses 

A couple of the provisions in the summary above stand out more than others, most notably that SBA loans and services would be available to businesses in the cannabis sector were it to become law. Credit has been hard to come by for legitimate cannabis businesses despite steady progress since Colorado became the first state to legalize recreational usage in 2012. Advocates for the bill say it could reduce barriers to entry into the burgeoning sector, advancing adoption and lowering the risk for enterprising entrepreneurs.  

While this bill doesn't altogether remove the complications involved when starting and operating a cannabis-based business, it would be a significant concession and acceptance of the industry on the part of the Federal government of the United States.  

In recent years, criminal justice reform has been a hot topic, and the decriminalization of cannabis has been a core talking point for reformers. While the impacts of any bill passing through Congress can't fully be known until many years after they have passed into law, there is little doubt that implementing the MORE Act into law would be seen as a massive victory for proponents of criminal justice reform. 

The Acceptance of Marijuana has been Steadily Building for Decades 

While the recent wave of state legalizations has seemed rapid and like a seismic shift in attitude towards the sticky-icky stuff, support has been slowly building for many years. The first time cannabis was legalized at any state level for medical uses was in 1996 with Proposition 215 in California. Before that, the first time it made it onto the ballot was in 1972 with Proposition 19, also in California, which would have legalized marijuana for recreational use had it passed. 

The vote on Prop 19 happened the same year that marijuana was added to the Schedule 1 Controlled Substances list by Attorney General John Mitchell of the Nixon administration. Since then, there have been repeated calls by many in the scientific community for reform or repeal of the government's official stance, claiming that it has no reasonable scientific basis and was a decision made for political reasons. With roughly 2 out of every 3 Americans now supporting legalization, it appears that even if The MORE Act were to fail to pass the Senate or get vetoed by the President, it is only a matter of time until a similar bill finds its way to becoming law. 

Thrive Medical Cannabis has been helping to lead the way for medical cannabis adoption and usage in the state of Texas since 2021. Today, most people are unaware that certain forms of medicinal cannabis are legal in Texas. Read our other blogs to learn more about the options available, or schedule a consultation to find out if you are eligible!