Washington Representative Adam Smith has joined a coalition
in Congress that is actively seeking to reform federal marijuana laws. Most
importantly, this coalition wants the federal government to respect the rights
of the states and their voters—especially those states that have already
legalized recreational and medicinal marijuana. Smith has signed onto the Respect State Marijuana Laws Act which would
immunize individuals and businesses that operate legally under their own state
laws. This bill is a bipartisan bill and has the support of both Democrats and
Republicans alike.
At the present time, 18 states have legalized medical
marijuana dispensaries and 2 states (Washington and Colorado) have legalized
recreational marijuana. As it stands, all of these states and individuals are
still considered in violation of the Federal Controlled Substances Act which
makes possession and distribution of marijuana a crime.
The Respect States
Marijuana Laws Act has bipartisan sponsors such as Alaska Representative
Don Young, Colorado Representative Jared Polis, and Oregon Representative
Blumenauer. Smith is the first Washington lawmaker to fully support the Act and
has the appreciation of the entire state's marijuana reform supporters and the
ACLU of Washington.
The federal government's Federal Controlled Substances Act
continues to stand in the way of marijuana reform and stands to jeopardize the
new recreational marijuana industry in the State of Washington. Just last
month, several medical marijuana dispensaries in the State of Washington
received "cease and desist" letters ordering them to close up their
shops—even though they were compliant with all state laws. If they fail to do
so within 30 days, the letter stated that they would risk their property being
seized by the federal government for being in violation of federal drug laws.
No comments:
Post a Comment