Congressional Committee Passes Bill To Enable Scientists To Undertake Research With Real Cannabis Products From Dispensaries

A bill that would enable researchers to analyze cannabis products from legal dispensaries was approved Thursday in the U.S. House committee, reports Marijuana Moment.

What Happened 

This new provision is part of a large transit bill, which has now passed the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, advancing to the full chamber for consideration.

Under the current law, scientists are allowed to use only limited amounts of cannabis formations that come from the only federally authorized source, the University of Mississippi. 

If the bill turns into law, scientists will be able to run impaired driving research with the real cannabis product that consumers are buying and using. It would also enable the interstate distribution of cannabis to researchers in states that do not have legalized marijuana. 

Nevertheless, the proposed provisions are not the crucial parts of the INVEST in America Act, a bill oriented toward securing capital for highway and transportation projects. The previous version of the bill which contained the same cannabis provisions did not pass the Senate. 

Why It Matters – Resolving The Access Issue

The cannabis research-related provision could have a significant impact on the current state of scientific research by resolving the persistent problem of access to high-quality marijuana and thereby enabling more studies. 

Just recently a similar change was made under the Biden administration when the Drug Enforcement Administration began to approve applications enabling some cannabis cultivators to become federally authorized to produce the plant for their own research purposes. 

Interestingly, although the DEA had begun asking for applications for additional cannabis cultivators under President Barack Obama then later the Trump administration, it had not approved any of them. As such, the University of Mississippi remains the only grower authorized as a legal source of cannabis for federal research and has been since it obtained its license in 1968. 

Section That Proposes Education On Cannabis-Impaired Driving Raises Questions

Another part of the transportation legislation proposes for states with legalized marijuana to work on educating people about cannabis-impaired driving. Some advocates criticize this section of the bill because it doesn’t include states where cannabis is not legal, and which also see cannabis-impaired driving cases. 

Advocates are questioning whether the language of the bill suggests that cannabis legalization raises the risk of people driving under the influence.

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