House Leadership today posted notice for Congressional consideration of the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act, HR 3884, which ends the federal prohibition of cannabis. The MORE Act is scheduled for a floor vote next week.
This is another victory for commonsense marijuana law reform in Virginia.
House lawmakers are preparing for a September floor vote on legislation – The Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement Act a/k/a The MORE Act — to remove marijuana from the federal Controlled Substances Act. The forthcoming vote would mark the first time since the passage of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, which placed cannabis in the same category as heroin as a Schedule I controlled substance, that a Congressional chamber has voted to remove marijuana from its prohibitive classification.
Senate members passed an initial version of the bill in 2019, while House members passed an amended version of the measure in February.
Mayor Stoney calls for legalization in advance of the Virginia General Assembly Special Session convening August 18
Legislation passed this spring decriminalizes possession of up to one ounce of marijuana and seals the records of past convictions from public view.
Democratic Governor Ralph Northam officially signed legislation today decriminalizing marijuana possession. The new law takes effect July 1, 2020 and reduces penalties for offenses involving the possession of up to one ounce of marijuana to a civil violation – punishable by a maximum $25 fine, no arrest, and no criminal record.
Gov Northam has approved legislation to decriminalize marijuana possession offenses and provide explicit legal protection to the state’s medical cannabis program participants. The new laws will take effect July 1, 2020.