(Washington, DC) — Today, U.S. House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Jodey Arrington introduced Smart Approaches to Marijuana Action (SAM Action)-drafted legislation to prevent a $2.3 billion tax cut for the marijuana industry.
Arrington’s legislation (H.R. 1447) a companion bill to S.471 introduced recently by Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Pete Ricketts (R-NE), would amend Section 280E of the tax code to specifically include marijuana. Dr. Kevin Sabet, President and CEO of SAM Action, released the following statement about the bill’s introduction:
“We thank Budget Committee Chairman Arrington for his strong leadership for this critical legislation that is both fiscally responsibility and sound drug policy. The federal government should not be in the business of giving tax breaks to companies profiting off the sales of federally illegal drugs. This legislation would prevent deficit increases, while ensuring that taxpayers don’t foot the bill for the revenue gap made by tax write-offs for people who choose to violate federal law and poison our kids.
“With support from key Congressional leadership including Representative Arrington and Senator Lankford, we are confident that this important reform can be advanced so that pot profiteers do not reap even bigger financial windfalls. We are grateful for Rep. Arrington’s courage in standing up for our nation’s young people and those suffering from substance use disorders. We look forward to this bill gaining support and hopefully being added to the budget reconciliation package.”
According to Section 280E, businesses trafficking in Schedule I and II drugs are unable to deduct business expense. Reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III drug would remove the federally illegal drug from Section 280E’s requirements, making billions for the marijuana industry and losing billions for the federal government. H.R. 1447 and S.471 have been introduced in advance of the budget reconciliation process, with members in both chambers working to see the critical legislation be passed into law. The House bill is co-sponsored by Reps. Blake Moore (R-Utah), Vern Buchanan (R-FL), Chuck Edwards (R-North Carolina), Gary Palmer (R-Alabama), Greg Murphy (R-North Carolina), and Vern Buchanan (R-Florida).
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