Legal Weed States Consider ‘Sanctuary’ Legislation to Protect Cannabis Industry From Feds – News

More than two months after Sessions shredded the Cole memo, feds have yet to raid any pot shops, but politicians in 420-friendly states aren’t waiting for the worst. Html” target=” blank”>California, told the AP. “

The “sanctuary” concept was birthed as a response to the federal government’s recently-bolstered immigration enforcement, with a number of states, counties, and cities passing ordinances to help protect residents from the expanded actions of U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. Html” target=” blank”>told the Los Angeles Times last month. “When Jeff Sessions announced he was repealing Obama-era protections on states’ rights in regards to cannabis, we decided to step up. Html” target=” blank”>California Assemblyman Reggie Jones-Sawyer has pursued marijuana sanctuary status for the Golden State since 2017 – before Sessions rescinded the Cole memo – as a path towards securing social justice in the state’s cannabis industry. Html” target=” blank”>said during a statement in January. “The last time California supported the federal government’s efforts, families were torn apart and critical state resources were used to incarcerate more black and brown people than ever before in the history of our state. “

In Massachusetts, where regulations for retail cannabis sales are still being finalized, legislators began seeking protections for the soon-to-arrive industry almost as soon as Sessions made the Cole memo announcement in early January.

“We have a state law, it’s valid, and we think it should be respected,” said state Representative Dave Rogers, who filed a cannabis sanctuary state bill in January, to the Boston Globe. “If federal law enforcement has something different in mind, they can use their own resources, because Massachusetts taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay to do something that goes against our laws. “

It’s not yet clear if any of the three sanctuary bills will actually make it past their respective legislatures into state law, but pushback from lawmakers against Jeff Sessions’ anti-marijuana posturing is both encouraging and necessary in the continued fight for cannabis legitimacy.