 The ‘inevitable end’ to federal cannabis prohibition is still a bit further off.
It’s coming, but as with most things in government, it’s slow going. This week, Senate Majority leader, Chuck Schumer, of New York, announced that the cannabis bill he has been promising for April is going to be delayed. He is now saying the “official introduction” will take place sometime “before the August recess.” His bill is called the Cannabis Administration & Opportunity Act (or CAOA Act). The measure would deschedulize marijuana from the controlled substances list, and allow states to determine their own cannabis laws, in the same way that alcohol is federally regulated. The reason for the delay in introducing his bill is a current lack of enough support to get it passed. As typical with many things these days, votes tend to get split right down party lines. Senator Schumer, who is a Democrat, needs the support of all 50 Democratic senators, and at least 10 Republicans to approve it, and currently he does not have those numbers. Schumer plans to reach out to more Senators to get their input on what they would like to see in the bill in order to get it passed. Schumer said in a press release, “I am proud of the progress made in bringing this vital bill closer to its official introduction before the August recess.” Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, who is a co-supporter of the bill said, “After months of substantive progress we are close to finalizing a bill that reflects common sense drug policy and delivers long overdue justice.” We will look forward to the updated release of this bill sometime before August. Comments are closed.
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