ASA's Work on Capitol Hill

Published in 2015

Americans for Safe Access is working with key policymakers on Capitol Hill in order to pass comprehensive legislation of a federal level that aims to minimize the federal conflict with state medical cannabis laws with a long term goal of eliminating the conflict all together so safe access can exist for all.  

The primary focus of ASA's Congressional work during the 114th Session of Congress is passing the Compassionate Access, Research Expansion, and Respect States (CARERS) Act. The bill has been introduced in both the House and Senate (H.R. 1538/S. 683) and is the most comprehensive piece of medical cannabis legislation that has ever been introduced at the federal level. The bill would protect everyone acting under a state medical marijuana program from federal interference, reschedule marijuana out of Sch. I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), lift research barriers, create access for banking services for state legal businesses, allow veterans to access state programs through their V.A. doctors, and remove CBD extracts from the CSA. Click here to learn more about CARERS and how you can support it.

ASA has also be active in getting medical marijuana protections added to several federal agency appropriations bills, including reauthorization of the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment, the Veterans Equal Access Amendment, and the Banking Amendment. ASA will be working to make sure these provisions are included in the ultimate budget bills when Congress finalizes them in September 2015.

ASA's work on the Veteran's Equal Access Amendment (House and Senate)

ASA's work on the Rohrabacher-Farr (House) and Mikulski (Senate) Amendments

ASA's work on the Banking Amendment (Senate)