On the 14th of July 2021, Senator Chuck Schumer proposed a bill that would decriminalise cannabis at a federal level. This bill would allow American’s to carry up to 10 grams of cannabis without facing any kind of criminal charges. The idea of this bill seems to be to expunge non-violent federal marijuana crimes, allow medicinal companies access to funding and further the overall research going into medicinal cannabis. This bill was also introduced with the hope of allowing those currently in prison for minor cannabis crimes to be released.
The use of cannabis by adults is currently already legal in 18 states. However, it is not yet legal at the federal level which can make it difficult for cannabis-based companies to access funding that they need to go ahead. This in turn can stop the advancement of medicinal cannabis research and research in general. In fact, at the moment there are only 3 states that have done nothing to alter their cannabis laws. All of the others who have not legalised recreational cannabis have legalised medicinal cannabis, so surely this is the next logical step?
Around 70% of the US population are in favour of cannabis legalisation so many believe it is time that the government caught up with the people. Not only do cannabis laws negatively affect companies that work with medicinal or recreational cannabis, but it is also thought that they are racially and financially targeted. It is no secret that many of the excessive cannabis laws are far more commonly put into practice in certain areas. These laws tend to be a good way to single people out for their race or their social standing. By removing ridiculous laws that target specific demographics we can actually alter the way that society starts to see those demographics. Reform is the best way to start moving towards any form of equality. It will also put a stop to perfectly good citizens being put away for small and non-violent cannabis crimes like carrying a small amount for personal use. There is also an aspect of the bill that will put money made by taxing cannabis into social support for the areas that have been most negatively affected by excessive cannabis-related arrests.
The plan for this bill is that each state will control production, distribution, and possession. Of course, states that decide not to legalise will not be able to legally import cannabis and so it cannot simply be introduced into the state externally. Although obviously, any states that don’t legalise are just agreeing to allow people to keep smoking illegally. However, if cannabis is being transported between two legal states the illegal state will not be able to stop it from going through its borders. The overall idea is to tax and regulate cannabis to ensure safe cannabis usage. This will also take a large amount of money away from criminal organisations that make money from selling weed but also dabble in harder drugs, human trafficking, illegal prostitution etc. By giving people a safer way to buy cannabis they will be dismantling criminal undergrounds all over the U.S.
Obviously, this proposed bill has a few of the right-wing politicians a little upset. There are a few issues that may mean this bill doesn’t have enough support to become law. For a start, the current president Joe Biden does not support the federal legalisation of cannabis. He actually had some of his staffers fired for cannabis use relatively recently which would look a bit odd if he then went supporting legalisation. The bill would need a minimum of 60 votes to pass through the senate, which may be difficult with the republicans involved.
The top Republican on the Judiciary Committee, Senator Chuck Grassley, believes that the bill “Put’s the cart before the horse.” He believes that there hasn’t been enough research into cannabis to allow legalisation. I mean, it’s not like cannabis has been around and in use for literally thousands of years and in America since America basically started existing. Unfortunately, people tend to be happier to just assume that we don’t know enough instead of actually bothering to read or fund the research that tells us pretty much everything about weed.
However, the most important thing, for now, is that the bill has been suggested. Hopefully, this will trigger a new push from the public and pro-cannabis politicians. The bill is being supported by quite a few important people, including Charles Koch of Koch Industries. If you haven’t heard of them they are one of the largest private companies in the US. He and a list of cannabis positive donors are ready and willing to put millions of dollars into the pro-legalisation effort. He is also posing the question of marijuana vs alcohol, why one is legal and the other isn’t when historically both have had their negative aspects.
If this bill does pass it would mean cannabis being removed from the list of controlled substances within 60 days. The definition of cannabis under The Federal Food and Cosmetic Act will also be changed. Essentially the regulations will be similar to that of tobacco or alcohol. There would be an age minimum of 21 to purchase cannabis. This definition would exclude hemp which is already perfectly legal. State compliant cannabis businesses will then be treated just like any other business, giving them access to financial and government support. As I’ve said, this will also be a huge deal for medicinal cannabis research which, up until now, has been somewhat stifled.
We will, of course, need to wait and see what happens next. Whether this bill will go the way of the previous cannabis business financial bill which was utterly overlooked, or if politicians will see the positive aspects of federal legalisation. Even if the bill doesn’t pass, which is a real possibility, hopefully, it will create a more open discourse regarding cannabis in the senate and maybe they will start to realise that the country is only becoming more and more pro-legalisation.
Newsletter Sign Up
Make sure you never miss another Vault promo – sign up for our newsletter at https://www.cannabis-seeds-store.co.uk/the-vault-newsletter
Remember: It is illegal to germinate cannabis seeds in many countries including the UK. It is our duty to inform you of this fact and to urge you to obey all of your local laws to the letter. The Vault only ever sells or sends out seeds for souvenir, collection or novelty purposes.
Photo by Samuel Branch on Unsplash