Why Is The Co-Chair Of Congressional Cannabis Caucus Intending To Vote Against The MORE Act?

A key House committee on Wednesday formally advanced the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act, which will essentially legalize cannabis, to the floor. 
Meanwhile, Rep. Dave Joyce (OH-R), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, sent a letter to fellow GOP members explaining why he intends to vote against the MORE Act as drafted. Likewise, he offered them guidance on the “cannabis policy landscape,” reported Marijuana Moment.

Sponsored by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D), the MORE Act would remove marijuana from the list of federally controlled substances, promote equity in the industry and impose a federal tax on marijuana products to fund various initiatives.

Rep. Joyce opposes the provisions of the MORE Act that “would punish those who have made a point to operate legally at their own personal cost, by placing an additional tax on legal operators to pay for the cost of industry access for illegal operators.”

Joyce pointed at legislation he sponsored, the Common Sense Cannabis Reform Act, a bill that would federally deschedule cannabis and direct the Food and Drug Administration and the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (under the Treasury Department) to regulate marijuana. The introduced bill does not mention any reparations to communities disproportionally affected by the War on Drugs.

“He is determined to make the conversation surrounding the MORE Act among Republicans a responsible dialogue about the inevitable end to prohibition and help other conservatives engage on this important issue,” Katherine Sears, communications director for Joyce, told Marijuana Moment.

Image Via El Planteo.