IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 943 

Urging action to increase equity within the legal cannabis marketplace. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 14, 2018 

Ms. LEE (for herself, Ms. NORTON, Mr. POCAN, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. 

MCNERNEY, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. TITUS, Mr. KHANNA, Mrs. WATSON

COLEMAN, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. KIHUEN, Mr. POLIS, Mr. CAPUANO, and 

Mr. CORREA) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 

the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, and Education and the Workforce, for a period to 

be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

RESOLUTION 

Urging action to increase equity within the legal cannabis 

marketplace. 

Whereas the communities that have been most harmed by 

cannabis prohibition are benefiting the least from the 

legal marijuana marketplace; 

Whereas a legacy of racial and ethnic injustices, compounded 

by the disproportionate collateral consequences of 80 

years of cannabis prohibition enforcement, now limits 

participation in the industry; 

Whereas 30 States and the District of Columbia have adopted laws allowing legal access to cannabis, and 9 States 


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and the District of Columbia have adopted laws legalizing 

cannabis for adult recreational use; 

Whereas legal cannabis sales totaled $6.7 billion in 2016 and 

are projected to reach $50 billion by 2026; 

Whereas according to the American Civil Liberties Union 

(ACLU), enforcing cannabis prohibition laws costs taxpayers about $3.6 billion a year; 

Whereas the continued enforcement of cannabis prohibition 

laws results in over 600,000 arrests annually, disproportionately impacting people of color who are almost 4 

times more likely to be arrested for cannabis possession 

than their White counterparts, despite equal rates of use 

across populations; 

Whereas people of color have been historically targeted by 

discriminatory sentencing practices resulting in Black 

men receiving drug sentences that are 13.1 percent 

longer than sentences imposed for White men and 

Latinos being nearly 6.5 times more likely to receive a 

Federal sentence for cannabis possession than non-Hispanic Whites; 

Whereas, in 2013, simple cannabis possession was the fourth 

most common cause of deportation for any offense and 

the most common cause of deportation for drug law violations; 

Whereas it is estimated that less than 1 percent of the cannabis industry is owned or operated by people of color; 

Whereas applicants for cannabis licenses are limited by numerous laws, regulations, and exorbitant permit applications and licensing fees in these States, which can total 

more than $700,000; 


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Whereas historically disproportionate arrest and conviction 

rates make it particularly difficult for people of color to 

enter the legal cannabis marketplace, as most States bar 

these individuals from participating; 

Whereas Federal law severely limits access to loans and capital for cannabis businesses, disproportionately impacting 

minority small business owners; and 

Whereas some States and municipalities have taken proactive 

steps to mitigate inequalities in the legal cannabis marketplace and ensure equal participation in the industry: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, 

2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

3 This resolution may be cited as the ‘‘Realizing Equi4 table & Sustainable Participation in Emerging Cannabis 

5 Trades Resolution’’ or the ‘‘RESPECT Resolution’’. 

6 SEC. 2. BEST PRACTICES AND STEPS TO ADDRESS DISPARI7 TIES IN THE CANNABIS MARKETPLACE PAR8 TICIPATION; ADDRESS, REVERSE, AND RE9 PAIR CERTAIN EFFECTS OF THE WAR ON 

10 DRUGS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The House of Representatives en12 courages States and localities to adopt best practices and 

13 take bold steps referred to in subsection (b) to address 

14 disparities in the cannabis marketplace participation and 

15 to address, reverse, and repair the most egregious effects 

16 of the war on drugs on communities of color, in particular 


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1 to those who now hold criminal records for a substance 

2 that is now legal and regulated. 

3 (b) BEST PRACTICES AND STEPS.—The practices 

4 and steps referred to in this subsection include— 

5 (1) establishing licensing and application fees 

6 that are reasonable to cover only the costs of pro7 gram implementation and necessary regulations; 

8 (2) creating a system where licensing is to be 

9 obtained at the city or county level and should be 

10 based on regulations determined by the local juris11 diction that meet the State’s minimum require12 ments, which allows the community to determine the 

13 type and number of businesses, avoids arbitrary caps 

14 on licenses, and results in an industry more rep15 resentative of the local market; 

16 (3) in States where license caps are completely 

17 unavoidable, establishing local oversight and control 

18 of cannabis licenses by allowing local cities and mu19 nicipalities to prioritize licenses for local citizens and 

20 residents, especially individuals most impacted by 

21 the war on drugs, by taking into account and 

22 prioritizing— 

23 (A) long-term residency within the State or 

24 locality; 


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1 (B) individuals whose income is less than 

2 80 percent of the median household income 

3 within a county; 

4 (C) individuals who have been formerly in5 carcerated; 

6 (D) individuals with prior drug law viola7 tions; and 

8 (E) individuals living within a jurisdiction 

9 that is heavily policed; and 

10 (4) adopting laws and implementing regulations 

11 that will allow small cultivators to thrive in the legal 

12 market; 

13 (5) creating more equitable licensing by— 

14 (A) eliminating broad felony restrictions 

15 for licensing; 

16 (B) focusing restrictions on entering the 

17 market to those, determined on a case-by-case 

18 basis for both licensees and employees, with 

19 criminal convictions that are relevant to the 

20 owning and operating of a business; and 

21 (C) prohibiting previous cannabis convic22 tions from consideration as justification for a 

23 denial of a license; 

24 (6) creating an automatic process, at no cost 

25 for the individual, for the expungement or sealing of 


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1 criminal records for cannabis offenses that is inclu2 sive of individuals currently on parole or under any 

3 probationary agreement, for cannabis offenses; 

4 (7) establishing a process for resentencing per5 sons serving sentences for cannabis convictions and 

6 redesignating of penalties for persons previously con7 victed of cannabis-related crimes for which the pen8 alties have been reduced or removed; 

9 (8) eliminating suspicionless drug testing for 

10 nonsafety sensitive positions; 

11 (9) eliminating punishment or other penaliza12 tion for persons currently under parole, probation, 

13 or other State supervision, or released on bail await14 ing trial, for conduct otherwise allowed under State 

15 cannabis laws; 

16 (10) setting aside a percentage of the tax rev17 enue from cannabis sales to be reinvested in commu18 nities that have been most affected by cannabis ar19 rests and the drug war, which most frequently have 

20 been communities of color, including programs for 

21 job training, reentry services, expungement expenses, 

22 public libraries, community centers, programs and 

23 opportunities dedicated to youth, and health edu24 cation programs; 


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1 (11) using a percentage of tax revenue to estab2 lish a special fund to provide small business invest3 ments to support people of color entering into the 

4 legal marijuana industry; 

5 (12) establishing cannabis regulatory and over6 sight bodies and commissions that reflect the racial, 

7 ethnic, economic, and gender makeup of the sur8 rounding community; 

9 (13) creating employment and subcontracting 

10 requirements for cannabis licensee in order to use 

11 the ancillary business activity generated by the can12 nabis industry to employ people of color; and 

13 (14) including provisions designating spaces for 

14 public consumption, either by the licensing of social 

15 entities or by creating these spaces. 

Æ 


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