The decriminalization of marijuana was passed by the House of Representatives, and I am here to give you ALL the details.

On December 4, 2020, Congress voted 228 to 164 to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level. In this vote, they also have decided to expunge any criminal history related to marijuana; although, it is still up to every state to put up regulations for the sale of marijuana. The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act, or MORE Act, was passed in the House but waits on the Senate floor. With the Senate being lead by Republicans, the House of Representatives does not expect the bill to be passed into law. However, they are voting on this now for future purposes.

They want to use the House's approval so if the Senate disagrees with it now, they could bring in a new bill that is similar to the MORE Act and show how many already supported the idea.

If the MORE Act were to be approved, there will not be a big difference in life because more than half of the country already legalized marijuana in some way at the state level. Thirty-four states have legalized medical marijuana, and fifteen states legalized recreational use of marijuana. The House of Representatives wants to show their progressive opinions and would like to take advantage of this new potential law with taxes. With the legalization of marijuana, they would put taxes in place. The Representatives are now aware of the skewed statics of marijuana related charges towards BIPOC communities. The legalization would prevent further damage.

To repay those communities in some form, they wish to erase any marijuana use from their criminal history.

Now, we wait and see what the future has in store for the United States. The fate of the bill is up to the Senate on whether or not it will become a law.