House Republicans get an early jump on marijuana bills for gun owners and veterans

Now that the dust has settled over the drama surrounding the election of Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), the GOP-led House of Representatives is wasting no time in introducing the first cannabis bills of the 118th Congress.

On Jan. 13, Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV) introduced the Second Amendment Protection Act. The bill would aim to allow medical marijuana cardholders to legally purchase and own firearms. Federal law currently prohibits them from doing so.

A few days later, on January 18, Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) introduced the Veterans Cannabis Use for Safe Healing Act. This bill would codify existing policy allowing military veterans to speak to VA doctors about marijuana and ensure veterans do not lose government benefits if they become medical marijuana patients.

Both bills were previously submitted by the same sponsors. Mooney’s bill received only two co-sponsors, while Steube had unsuccessfully introduced his bill twice before.

“Both represent an improvement over the status quo. But I think Congress has the political capacity for — and the American public deserves — more substantive reforms,” ​​said Justin Strekal, a veteran cannabis advocate and lobbyist who is now supporting the BOWL PAC leads, opposite Leafly.

“The two bills are incredibly narrow pieces of legislation that haven’t received much support from other GOP lawmakers in previous Congresses,” he added. “Both are just focused on addressing medical issues, even though half of America’s population now lives in adult-use states.”

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Will These Bills Do Better in a GOP-Run House?

Although both bills failed to gain momentum in previous terms, they may have more success in the new GOP-led House of Representatives.

Don Murphy, a veteran cannabis lobbyist and four-time delegate to the Republican Congress who previously worked as a conservative liaison for the Marijuana Policy Project, expressed optimism.

“I think these bills will do better because now the Republican Party is in the majority,” he said. “If you are in the majority, you are expected to deliver. Expectations are higher when you hold the hammer.”

“Some of these tangential bills that are on the fringes are going to get done, get hearings and get votes. Whether they will pass in the Senate, I don’t know,” Murphy added.

The Second Amendment Act would solve a persistent problem, but only for MMJ patients

Rep. Mooney’s bill, if passed, would begin to unravel the legal knot that bars Americans from owning firearms and marijuana.

The complication arises from the federal Gun Control Act of 1968, which prohibits a person in possession of a controlled substance from possessing a firearm or ammunition.

Anyone wishing to purchase a firearm must fill out a form asking if they are an “illegal user of or dependent on marijuana or other tranquilizers, stimulants, narcotics or other controlled substances.” Lying on this form may result in a criminal offense.

“I think we created millions of criminals with this question. You have no idea that everyone in Colorado who legally uses marijuana under Colorado state law has never purchased a firearm,” said Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), a co-sponsor of an earlier version of Mooneys Bill Marijuana Moment in 2019. “That would be completely illogical. Or the other way around.”

Mooney’s bill would only apply to medical patients, not adults who buy cannabis in legal states. As of May 2021, nearly 5.5 million Americans had registered as medical marijuana patients, according to the Marijuana Policy Project.

As of this writing, Mooney’s bill has picked four co-sponsors, all Republicans: David Joyce (OH), Nancy Mace (NC), Massie and Brian Mast (FL).

Veterans Bill is narrow in scope but valuable nonetheless

Rep. Steube’s bill — which he introduced in various versions in the last two congresses — seeks to codify existing policy that allows VA doctors to talk to patients about marijuana. It also ensures that veterans don’t lose any benefits by becoming medical marijuana patients.

However, it does not allow VA doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients.

“As a veteran, I am committed to ensuring veterans receive the care they deserve, and I know that sometimes that care can include medical marijuana,” Steube said in a statement.

Murphy believes the bill could gain traction in the Veterans Affairs Committee. “There are quite a few good Republicans in Veteran Affairs who have voted for SAFE Banking in the past. If you vote for SAFE Banking, how do you not support veteran access? Veterans are key to driving this forward for Republicans,” he told Leafly.

Are more cannabis bills on the way?

The 118th Congress has just begun, and many more bills could be introduced or re-introduced by the last Congress.

In the last session, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-NC) came out as a vocal advocate of cannabis reform and introduced the State Reform Act that would have decriminalized cannabis at the federal level. On the one hand, this bill could be revived. (According to Politico’s Natalie Fertig, Mace recently said that she aspires to be the “godmother” of cannabis.)

“You have leaders like Rep. Mace and Rep. Dave Joyce [R-OH] both of which had previously tabled bills to end marijuana prohibition by removing it from the CSA [Controlled Substances Act]. I have no doubt that both intend to do it again at this Congress,” Strekal told Leafly.

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MP Mace also introduced a bill to reduce the tax burden on legal cannabis companies in the final days of the previous session; she could also reintroduce it in this session.

Legislators have also been dragging the SAFE Banking Act around like a Sissyphos stone for years; they could try again at this congress.

Murphy believes SAFE could have more success if it starts in the Senate rather than the House of Representatives, as it has in previous sessions. “The house is the heavier lift now,” he said.

For example, Strekal didn’t sound particularly optimistic about a timeline for these other bills.

“It took them a whole week to choose a speaker. I don’t expect things that actually get done to get done incredibly quickly at GOP House,” he told Leafly.