Congressional Bill Would Authorize $150M To Universities For Cannabis Research

A new House bill, Higher Education Marijuana Research Act, will provide $150 million for cannabis research funding to be earmarked for universities over five years, allowing them to utilize cannabis via partnerships with state regulatory agencies and law enforcement, reported Marijuana Moment (MM).

Introduced by Reps. Dina Titus (D-NV) and Joe Neguse (D-CO) on Monday, the bill would add universities and public entities to the list of applicants the DEA will prioritize for cannabis research purposes. The agency would require annual reports to Congress on the status of the applications and any reasons for denials.

One of the more interesting features of the measure noted MM, is that the bill would allow universities in cannabis-legal states to “obtain or purchase marijuana from a State or tribal government marijuana regulatory body.” Though it is not clear how this would work in that regulators are not normally involved in procuring cannabis from licensed retailers. 

Regardless of how participating institutions access research cannabis, universities will soon be able to “study the type of marijuana in a State’s marketplace, public health considerations of marijuana policies in the State, and any potential medical benefits of marijuana.”

The bill also stipulates that cannabis provided through partnerships with law enforcement cannot be used in human clinical trials and that students and researchers who participate in the cannabis research will not be at risk of losing their federal funding, student financial aid or face immigration penalties. The universities will also be protected from any loss of funding related to this authorized cannabis research.

Read Marijuana Moment's full story HERE.

Photo by Lucas Vasques on Unsplash