“We do not believe that there is widespread support in the Congress for the use of federal law enforcement officials to override state law in this regard,” Reps. say
Representatives Barney Frank (D-MA) and Ron Paul (R-TX) are intensifying their efforts to rally Congressional support for House Bill 2592, the “State’s Rights to Medical Marijuana Act,” which would allow physicians to legally prescribe marijuana under federal law and permit state legislatures to establish distribution systems for the drug.
In a “Dear Colleague” letter distributed to House Representatives Wednesday, Frank and Paul said that recent actions taken by the federal government against California’s medical cannabis providers underscore the need for Congress to back HR 2592 and respect the rights of states to follow their own medical marijuana policies.
“We do not believe that there is widespread support in the Congress for the use of federal law enforcement officials to override state law in this regard, and we note that no one has pointed to any pattern of abuse that has resulted from these state policies,” they state. “But with the Supreme Court having ruled that the supremacy clause of the US Constitution allows the Executive Branch to override state policy on [the] matter [of the manufacture and distribution of medical marijuana,] and since the Executive Branch has shown a willingness, if not an eagerness, to do exactly that, the Congress is the only branch of the federal government that can act to preserve the rights of states to make their own decisions.”
They continue: “The regulation of medical practice has long been a state matter, and we think that, in this instance, it should remain so. We therefore ask that you join us in sponsoring legislation which has the sole purpose of allowing states which decide to reclassify marijuana so that it may be prescribed for medical purposes the ability to do so.”
Presently, 20 members of Congress are signed on to the bill, which awaits action from the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Subcommittee on Health.
For more information, please contact either Keith Stroup or Paul Armentano of NORML at (202) 483-5500. To learn more about the “State’s Rights to Medical Marijuana Act,” please visit: Bill to Repeal Financial Aid Ban for Marijuana Smokers. Full text of the bill is available at: http://thomas.loc.gov. To send a letter to your congressman urging support of HR 2592, please visit http://capwiz.com/norml2/issues/alert/?alertid=23972&type=CO.