As advocates and stakeholders await action on a federal marijuana rescheduling proposal, President Donald Trump has signed large-scale spending legislation that continues a longstanding policy blocking Washington, D.C. from legalizing recreational cannabis sales.
Despite District voters approving adult-use legalization for personal possession and cultivation at the ballot more than a decade ago, local officials have been consistently prevented from allowing commercial sales due to an appropriations rider included in a funding bill covering Financial Services and General Government (FSGG).
That rider, championed by Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), was maintained in the latest version approved by Congress and signed by the president on Wednesay as part of a large-scale funding package.
Here’s the text of the D.C. sales rider:
“SEC. 809. (a) None of the Federal funds contained in this Act may be used to enact or carry out any law, rule, or regulation to legalize or otherwise reduce penalties associated with the possession, use, or distribution of any schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 801 et seq.) or any tetrahydrocannabinols derivative.
(b) No funds available for obligation or expenditure by the District of Columbia government under any authority may be used to enact any law, rule,
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