The District of Columbia’s Marijuana Initiative and Congressional Review

By Rachna Choudhry, 2/24/15

On February 24, 2015, Alaska will become the third state in the country to legalize medical and recreational use. Under their ballot measure, which was passed by voters in November 2014, it will be legal to carry up to one ounce of marijuana and grow up to six plants. Washington state and Colorado have had laws in place legalizing marijuana since 2012, and Oregon passed a similar law via ballot initiative, which goes into effect in July 2015. Additionally, 20 states and Washington, DC have passed laws allowing smoked marijuana to be used for a variety of medical conditions.

This week, recreational marijuana use may also become legal in the District of Columbia — unless Congress intervenes.

DC's Marijuana Initiative

Last November, voters in the District overwhelmingly approved Initiative 71, which would legalize the limited possession (up to two ounces, or 100 joints according to the Washington Post) and cultivation of marijuana (up to six plants) by adults who are 21 or older. Unlike marijuana laws in other states, the initiative did not create a legal, regulated market for marijuana sales, but left it up to District Council. (On the right is a poster from the Initiative 71 campaign.)

Then, Congress got involved.

Under the District’s Home Rule government, Congress reviews all legislation passed by the Council before it can become law. It can disapprove a District measure within a review period of 30 business days, which in this case ends on approximately Feb. 26, 2015.

Congress’s federal FY 2015 funding bill known as “cromnibus”, which passed in December 2014, included provision introduced by Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) that challenged the District’s ability to enact marijuana laws by blocking it from spending funds to legalize or regulate the sale of marijuana. As a result, barring any additional Congressional intervention, the District’s marijuana law will go into effect as early as Thursday, Feb. 26—without any regulations in place governing a marijuana marketplace.

This month, President Obama proposed his budget for FY 2016, which would limit the prohibition passed by Congress to federal funds only—allowing the District to use local funds to enact marijuana laws or regulations. More broadly, the Administration supports the principle of Home Rule for the District, as well as statehood, and believes Congress should not interfere with local decisions. As White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest explained, “we do not believe that Congress should spend a lot of time interfering with the ability of the citizens of the District of Columbia to make decisions related to how they should govern their community.” 

Related Bills in Congress

Several bills have been introduced in Congress to address how the District of Columbia is governed:

• District of Columbia Paperwork Reduction Act (HR 730)

  “To eliminate the congressional review period for legislation passed by the D.C. Council,” according to the bill sponsor. “The mandatory congressional review period imposes wholly unnecessary administrative costs on the D.C. government, Congress and D.C. businesses and residents who have no certainty when D.C. bills, covering major issues such as taxes and regulations, will take effect.” 

• District of Columbia Budget Autonomy Act (HR 552)

  “To allow D.C.'s local budget to take effect after it is approved by the city without congressional approval,” according to the bill sponsor. 

• New Columbia Admission Act (HR 317)

  To make the District of Columbia the 51st state.

A Look at Federal Marijuana Laws

As the Office of National Drug Control Policy points out, "it is important to recognize that these state marijuana laws do not change the fact that using marijuana continues to be an offense under Federal law." However, in 2013, Attorney General Eric Holder in response to state marijuana laws said the US Justice Department is "deferring its right to challenge their legalization laws at this time."

Throughout early American history, marijuana use was legal under both federal and individual state laws. In fact, from 1850 to 1941, cannabis was included in the United States Pharmacopoeia as a recognized medicinal. By the end of 1936, however, all 48 states had enacted laws to regulate marijuana.

The federal government's first attempt to regulate marijuana, the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, made possession or transfer of cannabis illegal throughout the US, but for medical and industrial uses. An excise tax was established for these permitted uses. In 1969, the Supreme Court held the Marijuana Tax Act to be unconstitutional. In 1970, with President Nixon's urging, Congress passed the Controlled Substances Act placing marijuana in Schedule I—the most restrictive of five categories for substances with "no currently accepted medical use"—along with heroin, LSD, peyote and psilocybin (mushrooms). Drugs of abuse with recognized medical uses, including opium, cocaine and amphetamine, were assigned to Schedules II through V based on their potential for abuse. (Source: Congressional Research Service.)

Related Bills in Congress

As states take the lead in changing marijuana laws, several bills in Congress have been introduced to regulate marijuana at the federal level:

• Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act (HR 1013)

  “Removes marijuana from the schedule set by the Controlled Substances Act; transitions marijuana oversight from the jurisdiction of the Drug Enforcement Agency to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and regulates marijuana like alcohol by inserting into the section of the U.S. Code governing “intoxicating liquors,” according to the bill sponsor.

• Marijuana Tax Revenue Act (HR 1014)

  “Creates a federal excise tax on non-medical marijuana sales and moves this quickly growing industry out of the shadows,” according to the bill sponsor. This bill would also “impose a federal excise tax on the sale of marijuana for non-medical purposes as well as apply an occupational tax for marijuana businesses. The bill would establish civil and criminal penalties for those who fail to comply, like those in place for the tobacco industry. The bill also requires the IRS to produce periodic studies of the marijuana industry and to issue recommendations to Congress. It phases in an excise tax on the sale by a producer (generally the grower) to the next stage of production (generally the processor creating the useable product). This tax is initially set at 10% and rises over time to 25% as the legal market displaces the black market. Medical marijuana is exempt from this tax.”

• States' Medical Marijuana Property Rights Protection Act (HR 262)

  Would amend the Controlled Substances Act to exempt from civil forfeiture real property seized because of medical marijuana-related conduct in states where it is legal. “Allows medical marijuana patients and businesses–who are complying with state law–the ability to access and distribute marijuana free from federal interference,” according to the bill sponsor.

• Veterans Equal Access Act (HR 667)

  “Would make it easier for qualified veterans to access medical marijuana. Currently, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) specifically prohibits its medical providers from completing forms brought by their patients seeking recommendations or opinions regarding a Veteran’s participation in a state medical marijuana program. The Act would authorize VA physicians and other health care providers to provide recommendations and opinions regarding the use of medical marijuana to veterans who live in medical marijuana states,” according to the bill sponsor.

— Please keep in mind that highlighting a bill doesn't imply a POPVOX endorsement in any way. Rather, we're simply trying to offer one more way to stay informed of a complex legislative system. —