114th US Congress and Cannabis

2015 NORML Lobby Day ConferenceAllen St. Pierre, Executive Director

NORML / NORML Foundation

101st (1989-1991) vs. 114th (2014-2016) Congress

• World War II Generation (aka ‘Reefer Madness’ generation)

• Height of the war on some drugs• ‘Drugs’ was near top of concerns in public

surveys (today barely cracks top 20…)• Select Committee on Narcotics (oh so scary!)• Viciously oppositional media and opinion

makers

Five Reasons Why Cannabis Law Reform Today is Politically Popular

• Baby Boomers and younger• Internet (pressured media to be less

oppositional, information can be readily accessed and political organizing)

• Medical Cannabis circa 1996• Local and state economies need taxes• Cannabis Prohibition failed a long time ago

Cannabis Legalization No Longer An Abstraction

• Post legalization, notably in CO, and it is good.• Society now has credible and verifiable data re

the results of legalization (taxes, jobs, enforcement, regulation, DUIs, youth access and risk perception, etc…)

• Washington, Oregon and Alaska will provide even greater baseline

Cannabis Legislation Before The 114th

General Talking Points –

• The ongoing enforcement of cannabis prohibition financially burdens taxpayers, encroaches upon civil liberties, engenders disrespect for the law, impedes legitimate scientific research into the plant's medicinal properties, and disproportionately impacts communities of color.

General Talking Point #2

• The criminalization of marijuana is a disproportionate public policy response to behavior that is, at worst, a public health matter, but not a criminal justice concern.

General Talking Point #3

Responsible marijuana consumers should not face arrest, potential incarceration, a criminal record, and the stigma associated with it, for using a substance that is objectively safer than alcohol as well as most conventional medications.

O’Plentiful Pot Bills!

-Currently there are 14 pieces of legislation pending…more to come…20?-First time ever to have Senate bills to lobby (Cool!)-Banking, 280E reform and hemp have best chances-Marijuana Maypole for us all to ‘dance’ around-Media regularly covers the topic non-hysterically-Prospects of passage this Congress…not strong

Phalanx of Cannabis Lobbyists

• Cannabis consumers/stakeholders (NORML, CAN)• Do-Gooders (DPA, ACLU, OSI)• Cannabis Industry lobby (NCIA; individual

companies, i.e., Privateer, GhostGroup, etc…)• Medical-only lobby (increasingly for CBD-only)• Hemp-only lobby (Vote Hemp, HIA, NAIHC)• Hybrids that front for industry as do-gooders

(MPP, ASA)

H.R. 1013: Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act

PURPOSE: To remove cannabis from the United States Controlled Substances Act; to remove the enforcement power from the US Drug Enforcement Administration in matter concerning marijuana possession, production, and sales — thus permitting state governments to regulate these activities as they see fit.

Introduced: Feb 20, 2015

NORML alert online at: http://www.norml.org/act •

HR 103’s Key Talking Points

• Majority of voters support regulating marijuana;• Majorities of both Republicans and Democrats

believe that the federal government should not enforce criminalization in states that regulate marijuana use, production, and sales;

• It is time to stop ceding control of the marijuana market to untaxed criminal enterprises and to allow state governments the opportunity to pursue alternative regulatory policies.

S. 683: CARERS Act of 2015PURPOSE: To permit qualified patients, doctors, and businesses to engage in state-sanctioned behavior involving the production, sale, or use of medical cannabis without fear of federal prosecution; to reschedule marijuana at the federal level and remove the compound cannabidiol (CBD) from the Controlled Substances Act; to permit opportunities for financial institutions to legally provide services to medical marijuana businesses, to permit VA doctors to authorize medical cannabis, and to remove existing federal barriers to clinical trial research

Introduced: Mar 10, 2015

HOUSE COMPANION BILL: H.R. 1538

Introduced: Mar 23, 2015

S. 683’s Key Talking Points• Nearly 9 out of 10 Americans support allowing physicians to

authorize medical marijuana therapy;• 23 states and the District of Columbia permit medical marijuana

access. 14 additional states have enacted separate legislation exempting the compound cannabidiol (CBD) from the definition of marijuana. Patients and providers in these states should be able to participate in these programs without fear of federal prosecution or interference;

• Leading scientists and medical organizations, including Dr. Sanjay Gupta, the American Nurses Association, and the Epilepsy Foundation of America, support medical cannabis access.

H.R. 667: Veterans Equal Access Act

PURPOSE: To permit Department of Veterans Affairs health care providers “to provide recommendations and opinions to veterans regarding participation in state marijuana programs.”

Introduced: Feb 3, 2015

H.R. 667’s Key Talking Points• Passage of this act would allow VA doctors to recommend cannabis therapy

to veterans in the 23 states that presently allow for its therapeutic use;• Many veterans suffer from PTSD, a condition that is poorly treated by

conventional therapies. Studies have determined that marijuana mitigates various symptoms of post-traumatic stress, including nightmares and insomnia. One recent peer-reviewed study reported a greater than 75 percent reduction in post-traumatic stress symptoms following subjects’ legal use medical cannabis (Greer et al., 2014. PTSD Symptom Reports of Patients Evaluated for the New Mexico Medical Cannabis Program);

• In a recent House floor vote, some 200 members of Congress decided in favor of an amendment to allow veterans greater ability to access medical marijuana therapy.

•

H.R. 525: Industry Hemp Farming Act

PURPOSE: To amend the federal Controlled Substances Act to exclude industrial hemp.

Introduced: Jan 26, 2015

SENATE COMPANION BILL: S. 134

Introduced: Jan 8, 2015

H.R. 525’s Key Talking Points• 21 states have enacted legislation redefining hemp as an

agricultural commodity and allowing for state-sponsored research and/or commercial cultivation of hemp;

• The United States is the only western nation that does not permit commercial hemp production and manufacturing;

• Hemp is a genetically distinct species of cannabis lacking in THC content; its consumption is not mood altering;

• A 2015 Congressional Research Service report concluded, "[A] commercial hemp industry in the United States could provide opportunities as an economically viable alternative crop for some US growers."

H.R. 1774: Compassionate Access Act

PURPOSE: To provide for the rescheduling of marijuana, the medical use of marijuana in accordance with State law, and the exclusion of cannabidiol from the definition of marijuana, and for other purposes.

Introduced: April 14, 2015Referred to Committee: April 14, 2015

H.R. 1774’s Key Talking Points• Nearly 9 out of 10 Americans support allowing physicians to authorize

medical marijuana therapy;• 23 states and the District of Columbia permit medical marijuana

access. 14 additional states have enacted separate legislation exempting the compound cannabidiol (CBD) from the definition of marijuana. Patients and providers in these states should be able to participate in these programs without fear of federal prosecution or interference;

• Leading scientists and medical organizations, including Dr. Sanjay Gupta, the American Nurses Association, and the Epilepsy Foundation of America, support medical cannabis access;

• Removing cannabis from Schedule I will facilitate scientific research and clinical studies by doctors.

CBD-only Legislation

H.R. 1635 Charlotte’s Web Medical Access ActS. 1333 Therapeutic Hemp Medical Access Act

Cannabis Industry Favored Bills

H.R. 2076: Marijuana Business Access To Banking ActPURPOSE: To create protections for depository institutions that provide financial services to marijuana-related businesses, and for other purposes.

Introduced: April 28, 2015

H.R. 2076’s Key Talking Points• No industry can operate safely, transparently or

effectively without access to banks or other financial institutions;

• Forcing state-licensed businesses to operate on a ‘cash-only’ basis increases the risks for crime and fraud;

• Ultimately, the responsibility is upon Congress — not upon the U.S. Treasury Department — to change federal policy so that this growing number of state-compliant businesses, and their consumers, may operate in a manner that is similar to other legal commercial entities.

It’s About…The Money!H.R. 262: States’ Medical Marijuana Property Rights Protection Act PURPOSE: To amend the Controlled Substances Act so as to exempt real property from civil forfeiture due to medical marijuana-related conduct that is authorized by State law.Introduced: Jan 9, 2015

S. 987: Small Business Tax Equity Act of 2015 PURPOSE: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow deductions and credits relating to expenditures in connection with marijuana sales conducted in compliance with State law.Introduced: Apr 16, 2015

HOUSE COMPANION BILL: H.R 1855Introduced: Apr 16, 2015

The Democratic vs. Republican Divide

-It is there…clear as day!-Depending on the survey, there is about a 17%-25% gap in support between Ds and Rs-NORML, DPA, MPP, etc…PACs all give more to Ds (Why? Because they ask for it!)-Reformers need to double down on Rs to hasten cannabis law reforms…as it takes two to tango in politics

Politicians Know How To Count…Votes and Cash

-Surveys are great, but politicos and their machinery better count donations and votes-14% of the public consumes cannabis, but upwards of 54% support legalization-Very similar to arc of gay rights in U.S.-More state reform is equating to more federal policymakers aping their state peers (it really is binary!)

Need Easy Equivalent To…

Alcohol Prohibition largely boiled down to:

Wet vs. Dry

What is today cannabis prohibition equivalent?

Tolerant vs. Intolerant??

The Bottom Line

Cannabis Prohibition must end in the United States post haste and replaced with constitutionally-compliant, free-market and consumer-friendly tax-n-regulate polices; the prohibition is no longer popular in public surveys or voting booths; more and more states are legalizing cannabis, taking in hundreds of millions in taxes and putting upward political pressure on the federal government.