Congress Turns Its Attention to Marijuana This Week

Congress Turns Its Attention to Marijuana This Week

(FinancialHealth.net) – This week, the House Energy and Commerce’s Health Subcommittee is turning its attention to cannabis. A hearing, entitled “Cannabis Policies for the New Decade” will be held Wednesday to look at marijuana descheduling.

Currently, marijuana for medicinal purposes is legal in 33 states and it’s okay to use it recreationally in 14 states. The federal government’s failure to tackle the issue has left a patchwork of laws around the country.

The House panel comes nearly two months after the Judiciary Committee passed the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act. The bill would add, among other things, a 5% sales tax to marijuana products. That sales tax goes into a trust fund that would, in turn, benefit those affected by the war on drugs with re-entry and job training, as well as provide economic opportunities, including loans for people who own small businesses in the marijuana industry.

The hope is that the hearing this week, and some of the other bills currently making their way through Congress — like the bipartisan Secure And Fair Enforcement Banking Act — will allow entrepreneurs across the country to finally get a piece of the billion-dollar cannabis industry.

~Here’s to Your Financial Health!

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