Congresswoman Cherfilus-McCormick Votes to Pass H.R. 3617, The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE Act) of 2021

Washington, DC – Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick released the following statement after voting to pass H.R. 3617 – the MORE Act:

“In the 116th Congress, on December 4, 2020, the House took the historic step of passing a bill very similar to H.R. 3617, decriminalizing marijuana, by a bipartisan vote of 228 to 164, marking the first time a Congressional chamber had voted to decriminalize marijuana.

“Over the last two decades, many states have been passing marijuana reform laws that change how marijuana use is regulated in their state.  As of now, a total of 47 states have reformed their laws pertaining to marijuana use in one way or another.  And yet, the federal government has enacted no reform laws, with federal law having criminalized marijuana ever since 1937.

“This important bipartisan bill decriminalizes marijuana at the federal level, while enabling states to set their own regulatory policies without threat of federal intervention.  It takes long overdue steps to address the devastating injustices of the criminalization of marijuana and the vastly disproportionate impact it has had on communities of color.  It imposes taxes on the cannabis industry and uses the revenues to fund key services targeted to those adversely impacted by federal criminalization of marijuana – with people of color almost 4 times more likely to be arrested for cannabis possession than their White counterparts, despite equal rates of use across populations. 

“The bill also addresses the fact that, while communities of color have been disproportionately adversely affected by federal marijuana law, now that many states have legalized marijuana use, many people of color have been prevented from participating in the legal cannabis industry due to prior marijuana convictions.  The bill includes important provisions to provide the support needed to ensure that people of color have more opportunities to more fully participate in this growing industry.

“The communities that have been most harmed by cannabis prohibition are benefiting the least from the legal marijuana marketplace. This bill will help change that.”

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