Commentary On Schumer Bill: Groundbreaking Federal Legislation; CAOA Criminal Justice-Related Analysis

 

Earlier today, Senators Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) officially introduced a discussion draft of the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, their long-awaited effort to end federal cannabis prohibition. For those who missed the press conference, click herefor our Twitter recap.

We are thrilled to witness and support this historic effort. Not only would the enactment of the CAOC end our unjust and ineffective policy of federal marijuana prohibition, it would also work to facilitate record relief for thousands of individuals unduly burdened by federal cannabis-related convictions.

That said, we feel strongly the CAOC needs to go even further to ensure release and desperately-needed retroactive relief for many of the individuals serving cannabis-related sentences (as well as those still suffering due to the collateral consequences of a marijuana-related conviction).

To that end, we’ve prepared a robust analysis detailing the bill’s “wins”, as well as areas we will press lawmakers to amend, in our LPP Policy Analysis: CAOA Criminal Justice Provisions.

We commend the sponsoring Senators for anticipating the need for improvement and further iterations to the CAOA, and we look forward to working with them (as well as other advocates and elected officials) to ensure even more expansive and impactful retroactive relief provisions.

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