NEW BILL WOULD REMOVE FEDERAL MARIJUANA REGULATION

The Proposed Bill Would Leave the Regulation of Marijuana to State Governments.

HR 2306, the bipartisan bill known as Ending the Federal Marijuana
Prohibition Act of 2011, was introduced into Congress on June 23 by
D-Rep. Barney Frank with the support of R-Rep. Ron Paul. If passed,
the bill would not legalize marijuana, but would remove regulation
from the federal level and be left to the discretion of the states.
The bill lists a number of sections in federal law where marijuana
would be removed, essentially striking it from the federal list of
"controlled substances." The states would then have the power to
regulate, tax or prohibit them on their own terms. "A bill to limit
the application of Federal laws to the distribution and consumption
of marijuana, and for other purposes," the HR 2306 bill document said
in its introduction. According to Politico, the bill is modeled after
the 21st amendment, which repealed the alcohol prohibition. During an
interview about the proposal, Paul said that the prohibition is a
catastrophe. Kids are able to obtain marijuana more easily than
alcohol and marijuana is beneficial for many cancer patients, he
said. "The war against marijuana causes so much hardship and
accomplishes nothing," Paul said. "We knew prohibition of alcohol was
very bad, so this is just getting back to a sensible position on how
we handle difficult problems." According to their website, the
National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws [NORML] and
their state affiliates, like Washington NORML, act with the intention
to educate the public, lobby state and federal officials and gain
overall support for the elimination of the criminal prohibition on
marijuana. Kevin Oliver, the executive director of Washington NORML,
said they need support for the bill. "Once the bill has been
introduced and has a bill number, we should all begin asking our
elected representatives in the House to co-sponsor the measure,"
Oliver said. Brady Irwin, the CFO for the WSU branch of Students for
Sensible Drug Policy [SSDP] and NORML, said that this legislation
would be a huge win for the anti-prohibition movement. He said he
does not know if this bill will be the one, but it is a step in the
right direction.

"The cannabis culture is no longer marginalized to the outer edges of
society, and the discussion of drug reform has extended to every
level of government and society," Irwin said. "We are experiencing a
paradigm shift in the way our society views cannabis. I feel it is
only a matter of time before the federal prohibition of cannabis is
ended and it becomes a matter of states' rights." According to Irwin,
WSU SSDP/NORML is a combination of two student-run organizations that
work together to promote responsible use, patient rights, and policy
reform. He said the drive behind legalizing marijuana is users don't
want to break the law. He also said users also don't want to sit idly
and be scrutinized by past generations when users see unjust laws
hindering their freedom of choice. "I feel blessed to live in a
country where as an individual I can stand up and change the laws to
better serve our society," Irwin said. "Cannabis is a safer
alternative to alcohol and deserves to be regulated accordingly.
Responsible cannabis users deserve to have a choice." Irwin said he
cautions individuals who blame the police for laws against marijuana.
He said the police work to keep the community safe and law abiding.
"If a person has an issue with the laws, it is their duty as a
citizen to stand up and do something about it," Irwin said. "Blaming
the police for doing the job we pay them to do is the wrong
response." The bill is in its initial stages in Congress. D-Rep. John
Conyers, D-Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Rep. Jared Polis, and D-Rep. Barbara
Lee also support the bill.