Chavez-DeRemer cosponsors 2 bipartisan bills supporting ‘pragmatic cannabis policies’

WASHINGTON (KTVZ) – Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR) said Tuesday she has cosponsored two bipartisan proposals, the Harnessing Opportunities by Pursuing Expungement (HOPE) Act and the Preparing Regulators Effectively for a Post-Prohibition Adult Use Regulated Environment (PREPARE) Act, which would encourage expungement of cannabis offenses and prepare for the inevitable end to cannabis prohibition.

Specifically, the HOPE Act aims to help states with expunging cannabis offenses by reducing the financial and administrative burden of such efforts through federal grants. The PREPARE Act creates a fair, honest, and publicly transparent process for the federal government to establish effective regulations to be enacted upon the termination of its 86-year prohibition of cannabis.

“Many states across the country, including Oregon, have adopted common-sense cannabis reforms, and it’s past time for Congress to act to reflect this reality at the federal level. Helping states expunge minor cannabis violations and preparing for the eventual end of cannabis prohibition will remove barriers to opportunity," Chavez-DeRemer said.

"Additionally, these actions will pave the way for more robust reforms that will boost our economy while keeping our communities safe. That’s why I’m proud to support the HOPE Act and the PREPARE Act, and I look forward to working with my colleagues on these important bipartisan proposals,” she added.

HOPE Act

Prior to the introduction of the HOPE Act, Congress’ cannabis expungement efforts have focused on federal crimes. However, while a small number of individuals may qualify for the expungement of low-level federal cannabis charges over the course of decades of enforcement, the reality is that the overwhelming majority of cannabis-related charges are handled by state and local law enforcement. In 2019, the federal government was only involved in a fraction of the 545,000 cannabis offenses charged in the United States.

Unfortunately, despite the fact that expungement programs for cannabis-related offenses have recently advanced in states and cities around the country, many criminal record-keeping systems are not ready for or able to support these efforts. 

The HOPE Act would address these complications by creating a new grant program under the U.S. Department of Justice: the State Expungement Opportunity Grant Program. Through this program, the attorney general would be authorized to award grants to states and local governments to reduce the financial and administrative burden of expunging convictions for cannabis offenses.

The attorney general would be required to conduct a study on the impact of cannabis offenses on an individual’s criminal record, including impacts related to housing, employment, recidivism, and how such effects differ based on demographics. The study would also include a report on the costs incurred by states for incarcerating an individual convicted of a cannabis offense.

The HOPE Act was introduced in the House earlier this month by Reps. Dave Joyce (OH-14) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) and is endorsed by the R Street Institute, NORML, Americans for Prosperity, Useful Strategies, Last Prisoner Project, and the Due Process Institute. Full text of the bill is available HERE.

PREPARE Act

The PREPARE Act would direct the U.S. attorney general to establish the Commission on the Federal Regulation of Cannabis to advise on the development of a regulatory framework, which would be modeled after federal and state regulatory frameworks related to alcohol. Specifically, the legislation would:

• Direct federal regulators to develop a regulatory and revenue framework to ensure safe production and consumption of cannabis, which would account for the unique needs, rights, and laws of each state, and present such a framework to Congress within one year;
• Build upon the Obama and Trump administrations’ efforts to remedy the unjust consequences of the war on cannabis, particularly those suffered by minority, low-income, and veteran communities;
• Help grant medical professionals critical research access and training;
• Develop protections for the hemp industry, including cross-pollination prevention efforts; and 
• Help ensure that – absent a physician-prescribed treatment of a minor – cannabis remains an adult-only product.

The PREPARE Act was introduced in the House earlier this month by Rep. Dave Joyce (OH-14) and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (NY-08). Full text of the bill is available HERE.