Schumer has been the top advocate for marijuana legalization in Washington, calling it a top priority for the past two years. That`s one of the issues he said the Democrats would address if they won back the Senate in 2020. That`s partly because many state lawmakers with legal markets don`t yet support meaningful changes to federal law. Democratic Senator Jon Tester, for example, represents a state where weed is legal — Montana — and says he doesn`t support federalization. A handful of other Democrats told POLITICO they either oppose legalization or are undecided, including Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.). Schumer would need all the Democrats plus ten Republicans to bring the law past the finish line. The bill also includes other changes, including the following: Many of the changes added to the Senate`s final bill regularly reflect requests made by Republicans. Law enforcement grants, a national youth prevention campaign, and road safety research are consistent with concerns that legalization skeptics have often raised. Schumer has met with Republicans in recent months — including Rep. Dave Joyce (R-Ohio), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus — to discuss where the two parties could potentially meet on cannabis legislation. Whether the changes are enough to get enough Republicans on board, however, seems doubtful at this point.
Aside from full legalization, which may not have enough support to overcome Senate filibuster, there has been bipartisan support from this Congress for a bill that would grant federal protection to banks working with marijuana companies in states that have taken steps to legalize the drug. The bill has been a long time coming — Schumer, along with Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) of Sen, proposed a discussion bill more than a year ago — and his chances of making it to the Senate are slim. But the legislation will shape the discussion about cannabis legalization in the future, and parts of it will likely end up in other laws that could be passed before the end of the year. And even if a bill were passed somehow, it`s unclear whether President Joe Biden would sign it. He has repeatedly said that he does not support the legalization of weeds at the federal level. The Democratic-led House of Representatives passed a bill in April in a largely partisan vote that was called revolutionary for marijuana legalization. About two-thirds of voters support the decision, including the lion`s share of Republican voters — a sentiment largely maintained since another House vote in 2020. But the votes are not yet there to pass Schumer`s bill on Capitol Hill. To make matters worse, the House of Representatives has twice passed its own comprehensive marijuana legalization program, known as the Mariuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement Act. This bill does not contain much of the regulatory structure that is part of the Senate bill and also provides for a different tax rate.
Proponents of cannabis legalization have had success in the past by portraying it with Republicans as a state rights issue, but some Republicans who favor decriminalization are likely to be unhappy with the removal of cannabis-related criminal convictions and equity grant provisions. Instead, some Democrats and Republicans are considering a smaller cannabis bill later this year that could add one or more CAOA provisions to the SAFE Banking Act, a more widely supported bill that would make it easier for banks to offer financial services to cannabis businesses. This plan is still under discussion and nothing formal has yet been decided. CORRECTION: In an earlier subtitle of this report, the date of introduction of the bill was incorrect. It was presented on Thursday. Congress still has a lot of work to do this year, but Democrats are likely to lose the House in this year`s midterm elections. This has lit a fire among some lawmakers and cannabis advocates to find a weed bill that can be passed this year, and it is expected that after this bill gets its fanfare, the cannabis discussion will shift to what is possible in this Congress – contrary to what Democrats dream of achieving. But, as is the case with issues such as interracial marriage protection or access to birth control, bipartisan popular support doesn`t always lead to legislative progress, even though several states will consider their own changes to marijuana laws this fall. On the campaign trail, some Democratic candidates, such as Senate candidate John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, embraced the issue of legalization and may have motivated voters on the sidelines in his swing state, but many others downplayed it to focus on issues such as the economy, public safety, and abortion rights. While marijuana legalization has spread rapidly in the United States over the past decade, Capitol Hill hasn`t grown as fast.
Nineteen states now allow anyone at least the age of 21 to possess and use the drug, and 37 states have medical marijuana programs in place. National polls have consistently shown that about two-thirds of Americans support marijuana legalization, and support is even higher among younger voters. The most recent Morning Consult/Politico poll ran from September 30 to 2. October 2022 among a representative sample of 2,005 registered voters with an unweighted error rate of plus or minus 2 percentage points. “When a state like South Dakota votes for legalization by referendum, you know there`s something out there,” Schumer told POLITICO last year. “The American people began to speak with a clear message. More than two to one that they want the law to change. On Capitol Hill, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) backed Senator Cory Booker`s (D-N.J.) legislative push to remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act and allow states to enact their own laws.
But that measure didn`t budge in the House until lawmakers left the city in the midterm elections. Members of D.C. Marijuana judges hold up a large simulated joint during the rally to urge Congress to pass a meaningful cannabis reform bill at the Capitol in Washington, D.C., October 8, 2019. | Mark Wilson/Getty Images The Senate left Washington for the campaign season without responding to legislation that would end federal marijuana prohibition, leaving behind, according to a new Morning Consult/Politico poll as a popular policy proposal ahead of the midterm elections. The long-awaited cannabis legislation was introduced on Thursday, but faces an uphill battle to pass it. Senate leaders on Thursday are introducing a bill to repeal federal marijuana prohibitions more than 50 years after Congress made the drug illegal. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer`s Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act would decriminalize weed at the federal level and allow states to set their own marijuana laws without fear of sanctions from Washington.