Bennet, Colleagues Reintroduce Legislation to End Federal Prohibition of Cannabis

May 02, 2024

Washington, D.C.- Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet joined U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) to reintroduce the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act (CAOA). This legislation would end the federal prohibition of cannabis by removing it from the list of federally controlled substances and empowering states to create their own laws.

"This long-overdue legislation will protect legal businesses and workers in Colorado, open up research into cannabis, expand tax revenues, and help address historic inequities in our justice system. Congress should follow Colorado's lead and bring our nation's marijuana laws into the 21st century," said Bennet.

"It is long past time to confront the failure of the War on Drugs, particularly its disproportionate impact on communities of color and low-income individuals. We must take proactive and significant steps to rectify these ongoing injustices," said Booker. "Thousands of people have suffered at the hands of our broken cannabis laws, and the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act would finally dismantle the outdated federal marijuana prohibition, expunge past convictions for people with low-level cannabis offenses, and ensure restorative justice for communities impacted by the War on Drugs. These common-sense policies will ensure a more equitable criminal justice system and promote public safety."

"It's past time for the federal government to catch up to the attitudes of the American people when it comes to cannabis," said Schumer. "That's why we're reintroducing the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, legislation that would finally end the federal prohibition on cannabis while prioritizing safety, research, workers' rights and restorative justice. We have more work to do to address decades of over-criminalization, particularly in communities of color, but today's reintroduction shows the movement is growing, and I will keep working until we achieve meaningful change."

"Our comprehensive Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act doesn't tell states what to do-but it provides them with the tools to effectively implement the laws their voters and legislators choose," said Wyden."Public health, public safety, opportunity and social justice must be at the core of any cannabis reform proposal, and it's crucial stakeholders continue to have a seat at the table. I look forward to working with my colleagues and advocates across the country to make these priorities a reality."

The CAOA establishes a federal regulatory framework to protect public health and safety, prioritizes restorative and economic justice to help undo the decades of harm caused by the failed War on Drugs, ends discrimination in the provision of federal benefits on the basis of cannabis use, provides major investments for cannabis research, and strengthens worker protections. By decriminalizing cannabis at the federal level, the CAOA also ensures that state-legal cannabis businesses or those in adjacent industries will no longer be denied access to bank accounts or financial services simply because of their ties to cannabis.

In addition to Bennet, Booker, Schumer and Wyden, U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Kyrsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), and Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) also cosponsored the bill..

The text of the bill is available HERE. A summary of the bill is available HERE.

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