Bill Text: NJ ACR58 | 2018-2019 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges federal government to enact Compassionate Access, Research Expansion, and Respect States Act.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-09 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Health and Senior Services Committee [ACR58 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2018-ACR58-Introduced.html
ASSEMBLY CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 58
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
218th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2018 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman CLEOPATRA G. TUCKER
District 28 (Essex)
SYNOPSIS
Urges federal government to enact Compassionate Access, Research Expansion, and Respect States Act.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
A Concurrent Resolution urging the federal government to enact the "Compassionate Access, Research Expansion, and Respect States Act."
Whereas, Today, many Americans are suffering because federal laws have banned the prescription of a promising medical treatment, medical marijuana; and
Whereas, Combat veterans, senior citizens suffering from health conditions associated with old age, and Americans fighting debilitating diseases, such as epilepsy and cancer, deserve to receive the best health care and medical treatment available; and
Whereas, In many cases, the best possible treatment health care providers can offer is the use of medical marijuana; and
Whereas, Federal laws currently prohibit the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes; and
Whereas, The "Compassionate Access, Research Expansion, and Respect States Act" (CARERS Act), sponsored by Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Kristin Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and Rand Paul (R-Ky.), would end the federal prohibition on medical marijuana and eliminate ambiguity in related state laws; and
Whereas, The CARERS Act would recognize marijuana's medical benefits and expand patient access by reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule II drug, excluding certain strains of Cannabidiol, a marijuana derivative used for conditions such as epilepsy, from the federal definition of marijuana, and removing barriers to scientific research on the medical use of marijuana; and
Whereas, The legislation would let states develop their own medical marijuana policies by eliminating the threat of federal prosecution for patients, doctors, and dispensaries participating in state recognized medical marijuana programs; and
Whereas, The CARERS Act would also allow doctors from the federal Department of Veterans Affairs to prescribe medical marijuana to their patients and permit state recognized dispensaries to operate as legitimate businesses by expanding their access to the banking system; and
Whereas, The CARERS Act has the support of more than 20 high-profile policy organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Americans for Safe Access, Marijuana Policy Project, Drug Policy Alliance, and Law Enforcement Against Prohibition; and
Whereas, The passage of the CARERS Act would allow for federal laws that are fair and compassionate, permit states to set their own medical marijuana policies without federal interference, and make marijuana accessible to the millions of Americans who would benefit from its medicinal properties; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey (the Senate concurring):
1. The United States Congress and the President of the United States are urged to enact the "Compassionate Access, Research Expansion, and Respect States Act" (CARERS Act) to allow for federal laws that are fair and compassionate, permit states to set their own medical marijuana policies without federal interference, and make marijuana accessible to the millions of Americans who would benefit from its medicinal properties.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate to the President of the United States, the Majority and Minority leaders of the United States Senate, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, and to every member of Congress elected from this State.
STATEMENT
This concurrent resolution urges the United States Congress and the President of the United States to enact the "Compassionate Access, Research Expansion, and Respect States Act" (CARERS Act) to allow for federal laws that are fair and compassionate, permit states to set their own medical marijuana policies without federal interference, and make marijuana accessible to the millions of Americans who would benefit from its medicinal properties.
