[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2843 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2843
To decriminalize marijuana, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 20, 2019
Mr. Jeffries (for himself, Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Blumenauer, Ms.
Norton, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Cohen, Miss Rice of New York, Mr. Cardenas,
Mr. Huffman, Mr. Espaillat, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Rush, Mr.
Pocan, Ms. Gabbard, Ms. Tlaib, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Mr. Hastings,
Mr. Serrano, Mr. Perlmutter, Mr. Trone, Mr. Lowenthal, Ms. Haaland, Mr.
Raskin, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Clark of Massachusetts, Mr.
Crist, Mr. Neguse, Mr. Correa, Mr. Engel, Mr. Soto, Mr. Grijalva, and
Mr. Ted Lieu of California) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to
the Committees on the Judiciary, Natural Resources, Agriculture,
Transportation and Infrastructure, and Small Business, for a period to
be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the
committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To decriminalize marijuana, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity
Act''.
SEC. 2. DECRIMINALIZATION OF MARIJUANA.
(a) Marihuana Removed From Schedule of Controlled Substances.--
Subsection (c) of schedule I of section 202(c) of the Controlled
Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812) is amended--
(1) by striking ``marihuana''; and
(2) by striking ``tetrahydrocannabinols''.
(b) Removal of Prohibition on Import and Export.--Section 1010(b)
of the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act (21 U.S.C. 960) is
amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)--
(A) in subparagraph (F), by inserting ``or'' after
the semicolon;
(B) by striking subparagraph (G); and
(C) by redesignating subparagraph (H) as
subparagraph (G);
(2) in paragraph (2)--
(A) in subparagraph (F), by inserting ``or'' after
the semicolon;
(B) by striking subparagraph (G); and
(C) by redesignating subparagraph (H) as
subparagraph (G);
(3) in paragraph (3), by striking ``paragraphs (1), (2),
and (4)'' and inserting ``paragraphs (1) and (2)'';
(4) by striking paragraph (4); and
(5) by redesignating paragraphs (5), (6), and (7) as
paragraphs (4), (5), and (6), respectively.
(c) Conforming Amendments to Controlled Substances Act.--The
Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 801 et seq.) is amended--
(1) in section 102(44) (21 U.S.C. 802(44)), by striking
``marihuana,'';
(2) in section 401(b) (21 U.S.C. 841(b))--
(A) in paragraph (1)--
(i) in subparagraph (A)--
(I) in clause (vi), by inserting
``or'' after the semicolon;
(II) by striking (vii); and
(III) by redesignating clause
(viii) as clause (vii);
(ii) in subparagraph (B)--
(I) by striking clause (vii); and
(II) by redesignating clause (viii)
as clause (vii);
(iii) in subparagraph (C), in the first
sentence, by striking ``subparagraphs (A), (B),
and (D)'' and inserting ``subparagraphs (A) and
(B)'';
(iv) by striking subparagraph (D);
(v) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as
subparagraph (D); and
(vi) in subparagraph (D)(i), as so
redesignated, by striking ``subparagraphs (C)
and (D)'' and inserting ``subparagraph (C)'';
(B) by striking paragraph (4); and
(C) by redesignating paragraphs (5), (6), and (7)
as paragraphs (4), (5), and (6), respectively;
(3) in section 402(c)(2)(B) (21 U.S.C. 842(c)(2)(B)), by
striking ``, marihuana,'';
(4) in section 403(d)(1) (21 U.S.C. 843(d)(1)), by striking
``, marihuana,'';
(5) in section 418(a) (21 U.S.C. 859(a)), by striking the
last sentence;
(6) in section 419(a) (21 U.S.C. 860(a)), by striking the
last sentence;
(7) in section 422(d) (21 U.S.C. 863(d))--
(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by
striking ``marijuana,''; and
(B) in paragraph (5), by striking ``, such as a
marihuana cigarette,''; and
(8) in section 516(d) (21 U.S.C. 886(d)), by striking
``section 401(b)(6)'' each place the term appears and inserting
``section 401(b)(5)''.
(d) Other Conforming Amendments.--
(1) National forest system drug control act of 1986.--The
National Forest System Drug Control Act of 1986 (16 U.S.C. 559b
et seq.) is amended--
(A) in section 15002(a) (16 U.S.C. 559b(a)) by
striking ``marijuana and other'';
(B) in section 15003(2) (16 U.S.C. 559c(2)) by
striking ``marijuana and other''; and
(C) in section 15004(2) (16 U.S.C. 559d(2)) by
striking ``marijuana and other''.
(2) Interception of communications.--Section 2516 of title
18, United States Code, is amended--
(A) in subsection (1)(e), by striking
``marihuana,''; and
(B) in subsection (2) by striking ``marihuana,''.
SEC. 3. LEVEL THE ECONOMIC PLAYING FIELD.
(a) Estimate.--On an annual basis, the Secretary of the Treasury
shall make a reasonable estimate of total tax revenue generated by the
marijuana industry for the previous 12-month period.
(b) Transfer.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer from
the general fund of the Treasury to the trust fund established under
subsection (c) the greater of--
(1) an amount equal to 10 percent of the amount estimated
under subsection (a); and
(2) $10,000,000.
(c) Trust Fund.--
(1) In general.--There is established in the Treasury of
the United States a trust fund to be known as the Marijuana
Opportunity Trust Fund, which shall consist of amounts
transferred under subsection (b).
(2) Use of amounts.--Amounts in the trust fund established
under paragraph (1) shall be made available to the
Administrator of the Small Business Administration to provide
loans under section 7(m) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.
636(m)) to assist--
(A) small business concerns owned and controlled by
women, as defined in section 3 of that Act (15 U.S.C.
632), that operate in the marijuana industry; and
(B) small business concerns owned and controlled by
socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, as
defined in section 8(d)(3)(C) of that Act (15 U.S.C.
637(d)(3)(C)), that operate in the marijuana industry.
SEC. 4. HIGHWAY SAFETY RESEARCH.
(a) Study; Development.--The Administrator of the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (referred to in this section as the
``Administrator'') shall--
(1) carry out a study of the impact of driving under the
influence of tetrahydrocannabinol on highway safety; and
(2) develop enhanced strategies and procedures to reliably
determine the impairment of a driver under the influence of
tetrahydrocannabinol.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the Administrator to carry out this section $50,000,000
for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024.
SEC. 5. PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCH.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services, in
consultation with the Director of the National Institutes of Health and
the Commissioner of Food and Drugs, shall conduct research on the
impacts of marijuana, including--
(1) effects of tetrahydrocannabinol on the human brain;
(2) efficacy of medicinal marijuana as a treatment for
specific diseases and conditions; and
(3) identification of additional medical benefits and uses
of cannabis.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services,
$100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024, for purposes
of carrying out the activities described in subsection (a).
SEC. 6. PROTECT KIDS.
The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau of the Department of
the Treasury shall promulgate regulations that--
(1) require restrictions on the advertising and promotion
of products related to marijuana, if the Secretary determines
that such regulation would be appropriate for the protection of
the public health, taking into account--
(A) the risks and benefits to the population of
individuals age 18 and under, including users and
nonusers of marijuana products;
(B) the increased or decreased likelihood that
existing users of marijuana products who are age 18 and
under will stop using such products; and
(C) the increased or decreased likelihood that
those age 18 and under who do not use marijuana
products will start using such products; and
(2) impose restrictions on the advertising and promotion of
products related to marijuana consistent with and to the full
extent permitted by the First Amendment to the Constitution of
the United States.
SEC. 7. GRANTS FOR EXPUNGEMENT OF MARIJUANA CONVICTIONS.
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General to
award grants to States and units of local government for the purpose of
administering, expanding, or developing expungement or sealing programs
for convictions of possession of marijuana $20,000,000 for each of
fiscal years 2020 through 2024 with not less than 50 percent of those
funds being directed to cover the cost of public defenders or legal aid
providers.
SEC. 8. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act, or an amendment made by this Act, may be
construed to modify the authority of the Federal Government to prevent
marijuana trafficking from States that have legalized marijuana to
those that have not.
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