“If marijuana remains a controlled substance under the CSA under any schedule, that would maintain the existing conflict between the federal government and states that have legalized recreational marijuana, though moving marijuana to a less restrictive schedule could help mitigate conflicts between federal law and state medical marijuana laws.
The panel effectively replaced the original language of the Senate bill with much of HB 837, which is much more limited in scope and primarily concerns penalties and expungements issues.
Then, facing an end-of-week deadline requiring lawmakers to pass bills through both chambers in order to maintain their ability to override a veto from the governor, the newly revised text of the Senate bill was inserted into HB 837.
HB 1 was revised ahead of Wednesday’s hearing to specify on the proposed ballot question that legalization would take effect on July 1, 2023.
“We don’t really have an answer as to whether we ought to be more specific about what does,” one member said.
Some senators have expressed concerns over Clippinger’s bifurcated approach to the reform, preferring to tackle comprehensive regulations for the would-be recreational market before the issue went to voters.
Assuming voters get the chance to pass legalization at the ballot, and HB 837 is also enacted, the purchase and possession of up to 1.5 ounces of cannabis would be legal for adults.
Past convictions for conduct made legal under the proposed law would be automatically expunged, and people currently serving time for such offenses would be eligible for resentencing.
To understand the effects of legalization on the state and its residents, the statutory bill would also establish various research initiatives, including studies into youth impacts, use patterns, impaired driving, advertising, labeling, quality control of products and barriers to entering the industry.
Possession of small amounts of cannabis would become a civil offense on January 1, 2023, punishable by a $100 fine for up to 1.5 ounces, or $250 for more than 1.5 ounces and up to 2.5 ounces.
Activists also wanted lawmakers to include a provision preventing police from using the odor of marijuana alone as the basis for a search, for example, and that wasn’t included.
Another potential problem that advocates have identified is the proposed allocation of equity funds.
As noted, certain senators, including Senate President Bill Ferguson , have expressed skepticism about punting the creation of regulations for the marijuana market until next.
Prior to being significantly altered, Feldman’s Senate bill would have allowed home cultivation of up to four plants per adult, with a maximum of eight plants per residence.
The senator’s bill as filed was considered at a Finance Committee hearing earlier this month, along with a separate Senate measure, SB 692, from Sen.
When it comes to marijuana, legalization began to advance through Maryland’s legislature last session, but no votes were ultimately held.
Two years later, a decriminalization law took effect that replaced criminal penalties for possession of less than 10 grams with a civil fine of $100 to $500.
Also that year, the governor vetoed a bill that would have shielded people with low-level cannabis convictions from having their records publicized on a state database.
As for Maryland lawmakers, a House committee in 2019 held hearings on two bills that would have legalized marijuana.
It does not appear that the offer was taken up, as the newer letter from Joyce’s office to GOP congressional staff makes clear that, from his perspective, the MORE Act in its current form is unworkable.
It also addresses GOP members who are interested in engaging on marijuana policy issues but oppose the MORE Act, pointing them to legislation Joyce sponsored titled the Common Sense Cannabis Reform Act.
That legislation is “the only Republican-led comprehensive cannabis reform bill that does not include any MORE Act provisions,” the letter says, seemingly contrasting it with a GOP-led legalization bill sponsored by Rep.
When the MORE Act reaches the floor, it will mark the second time in history that cannabis legalization legislation has been taken up by a full chamber of Congress.
With the MORE Act vote coming up I wanted to touch base again here to reiterate our office’s willingness to serve a resource for anyone looking to talk through the cannabis policy landscape.
For any Republicans who do want to engage on cannabis reform but also don’t like the MORE Act, I’d flag my boss’s bill, H.R.
In addition to info on this bill I’ve attached a document that includes more info on my boss’s perspective on MORE for anyone interested.
ready to work with you to refine the MORE Act so that it can garner adequate bipartisan support.
· Patients in the study using marijuana to treat pain, anxiety, and depression failed to report improved symptoms, and the use of marijuana brought risk of addiction known as cannabis abuse disorder .
“This is an issue of public safety.
“Walking around with bags of cash is something that we need to move away from, and both the state and federal government need to take the appropriate provisions to prevent that,” he said.
He’s even made a point to talk about enacting the reform legislation during committee hearings on ostensibly unrelated or wider-ranging legislation, like at a recent House Rules Committee hearing.
Some Republicans are scratching their heads about how Democrats have so far failed to pass the modest banking reform with majorities in both chambers and control of the White House, too.
While reform bills have been introduced in past sessions and the policy change has the support of Gov.
Dan Laughlin , the chief sponsors of the bipartisan legalization bill filed last year, also recently filed a bill that would allow medical marijuana patients to cultivate their own plants for personal use.
Wolf, the governor, said last year that marijuana legalization was a priority as he negotiated the annual budget with lawmakers.
The governor, who signed a medical cannabis expansion bill in June, has repeatedly called for legalization and pressured the Republican-controlled legislature to pursue the reform since coming out in favor of the policy in 2019.
Senate this year, said one of his key goals in his final year in office is to ensure that as many eligible people as possible submit applications to have the courts remove their cannabis records and restore opportunities to things like housing, student financial aid and employment through an expedited petition program.