House Bill To Remove Cannabis As Obstacle To Fed Employment Faces Record-Keeping Complications

A Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report released Friday highlights significant limitations in a House bill designed to modify federal employment and security clearances for people who have used cannabis in the past. The bipartisan legislation, spearheaded by Reps. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Nancy Mace (R-SC), and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) encountered obstacles due to existing federal record-keeping policies, rendering key provisions potentially ineffective.

Legislative Intent Vs. CBO’s Feasibility Analysis

Initially, the Cannabis Users' Restoration of Eligibility (CURE) Act, passed in September 2023, sought to eliminate past cannabis use as a disqualifier for federal employment or security clearances. However, the focus shifted to past cannabis use after committee amendments, reported Marijuana Moment. 

In this context, CBO’s analysis suggests that the bill’s intent, which is to review past denials may be unattainable. The report, signed by CBO’s director Phillip L. Swagel, says current laws dictate that records about security clearance and personnel eligibility are temporary and can be destroyed after a brief period, complicating the bill’s review process.

Limited Record Retention Hinders Bill’s Impact

According to the CBO, most agencies destroy files related to non-issued security clearances within a year. The maintenance period for personnel eligibility records varies by agency and usually lasts only a few years. This practice significantly reduces the agencies’ ability to review past disqualifications, undermining the bill’s intent to reassess decisions made based on cannabis use.

Modest Costs For A Modest Reform

The CBO estimates that the cost of implementing the CURE Act would be minimal, primarily because the necessary records for a comprehensive review are likely unavailable. The bill, therefore, represents a modest reform with negligible financial implications, contingent upon the specific record-keeping policies of each federal agency.

"While federal agencies may not have the records available to review every prior hiring decision and security clearance review, the CURE Act will still help thousands of applicants to fairly get jobs they are most qualified for and the security clearances they need to be hired," Rep. Jamie Raskin told Marijuana Moment.

Evolving Federal Cannabis Policy

The CURE Act has been altered by various amendments, including the removal of provisions for a public request website and a 90-day reconsideration window for denied applications due to cannabis use. While the bill faces limitations in addressing past injustices, it marks an important step towards aligning policy with evolving societal attitudes towards cannabis.