A key House committee on Tuesday approved an amendment to provide broad protections for states, U.S. territories and tribes that have legalized marijuana.
While lawmakers had pushed Appropriations Committee leadership to include the cannabis language in the base Fiscal Year 2023 spending legislation for Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CSJ) as introduced, that didn’t end up happening, much to their disappointment. Supporters, therefore, launched a backup plan to pursue the rider as an amendment in committee, as Marijuana Moment first reported on Monday.
Jointly introduced by Reps. Barbara Lee (D-CA) and Dave Joyce (R-OH), co-chairs of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, the amendment passed on a voice vote. Now the CJS bill includes provisions preventing the Justice Department from using federal funds from interfering in the implementation of any cannabis programs.
“Today the majority of Americans reside in a jurisdiction where the medical or adult use of cannabis is legal under state law,” Lee told fellow panel members ahead of the vote. “We believe that the federal government should not interfere with these programs and should respect the will of the people residing in these states, territories and tribal jurisdictions.”
“It is critically important that we protect state territories and tribes
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