On the recordDecember 4, 2020
I am proud to have introduced H.R. 3884, the ``Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act of 2020,'' or the ``MORE Act of 2020.'' This long overdue legislation would reverse the failed policy of criminalizing marijuana on the federal level and would take steps to address the heavy toll this policy has taken across the country, particularly on communities of color. The MORE Act would make three important changes to federal law: (1) remove marijuana, or cannabis, from the list of federally controlled substances; (2) authorize the provision of resources, funded by an excise tax on marijuana, to address the needs of communities that have been seriously impacted by the War on Drugs, including increasing the participation of communities of color in the burgeoning cannabis market; and (3) provide for the expungement of Federal marijuana convictions and arrests. For far too long, we have treated marijuana as a criminal justice problem instead of as a matter of personal choice and public health. Whatever one's views are on the use of marijuana for recreational or medicinal use, the policy of arrests, prosecution, and incarceration at the Federal level has proven unwise and unjust. This issue is not new to Congress. There have been many Members who have introduced bills upon which provisions in this bill are based.…
