A bipartisan group of 29 congressional lawmakers from both the House and Senate sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Thursday, asking that he formally back federal marijuana legalization as the administration carries out a review of cannabis scheduling at his direction. The letter, the text of which was obtained by Marijuana Moment last […]| Marijuana Moment
President-elect Joe Biden has picked the current attorney general of California to lead serve as the next federal secretary of health and human services, a position that could play a central role in loosening laws prohibiting marijuana. That seems to be good news for legalization advocates, as Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D) has a considerable […]| Marijuana Moment
The Biden administration’s top health official on Monday tweeted a link to a Marijuana Moment article that discusses the president’s recent administrative cannabis scheduling directive. U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra posted the link at precisely 4:20pm ET—the second time during his tenure that he shared marijuana policy news at that symbolic […]| Marijuana Moment
President Joe Biden’s surprise marijuana pardon action last week has been widely praised as an important step toward righting the wrongs of prohibition. But advocates have also been quick to point out that the move is seriously limited in scope and will leave many victims of the war on cannabis behind, without relief. People prosecuted […]| Marijuana Moment
Just one in four Republicans agree that people of color are unfairly punished over marijuana, despite data consistently showing that Black and Hispanic people are disproportionately arrested over cannabis compared to white people, according to a new poll. It’s a significant finding, especially given how commonly studies and reports about racial discrimination in cannabis enforcement […]| Marijuana Moment
The Justice Department and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) say they will quickly act to follow President Joe Biden’s new directive to review marijuana’s federal scheduling status and process mass cannabis possession pardons. Within an hour after the president made the surprise announcement, a DOJ spokesperson released a statement saying the department […]| Marijuana Moment
Speaking at an event commemorating the end of Black History Month on Monday, President Joe Biden again touted his move to pardon people for marijuana—highlighting the racially disparate impact of cannabis enforcement. “Another thing about equal justice. I’m keeping my promise: No one should be in prison for the mere possession of marijuana,” the president […]| Marijuana Moment
President Joe Biden has officially signed a marijuana research bill into law, making history by enacting the first piece of standalone federal cannabis reform legislation in U.S. history. The bill cleared the House in July and the Senate last month, and a White House spokesperson confirmed to Marijuana Moment that the president intended to sign […]| Marijuana Moment