Monday, July 19 saw Representatives Tom Rice of South Carolina and Jackie Walorski of Indiana file a Republican partisan bill. The bill would block low-income families from purchasing cannabis if they are on federal assistance. This includes purchases at both medical and recreational dispensaries by anyone on the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. HR 4536 is the Welfare For Needs Not Weed Act. Right now, HR 4536 is the latest in a series of bills over the years to try and block low-income family cannabis purchases.
HR 4536
When asked about HR 4536, a spokesperson for Representative Rice said “ (Congressman Rice) believes it would be a misuse of taxpayer dollars to allow folks receiving welfare to use the funds for marijuana purchases.”
“Those taxpayer funds should instead be used by families who require assistance meeting actual needs,” they continued. “The cash benefits are already restricted at casinos, liquor stores and strip clubs. This bill simply closes a loophole (preventing) people from exploiting the system as legal marijuana purchases continue to expand across the country.”
HR 4536 has similarities to previous legislation on the same topic, with the earliest version introduced in 2014 as Republican bill HR 4137. If the bill passed, it would block low-income families from purchasing anything at cannabis dispensaries with an EBT card. Families also can’t withdraw cash from EBT cards anywhere. That way, all transactions remain trackable. Previous versions of HR 4536 have not passed. However, similar bills seem to appear every session.
Public Outrage
Activists and prominent organizations have spoken out against HR 4536. Queen Adesuyi is the policy manager for the Drug Policy Alliance’s Office of National Affairs. “Millions of Americans living with chronic, debilitating conditions rely on cannabis to manage their symptoms and significantly increase their quality of life. For millions of patients, cannabis IS a need,” Ms. Adesuyi told Marijuana Moment. “Instead of introducing a bill to ensure that under-resourced individuals, including veterans, have access to cannabis’ medical benefits, Representative Tom Rice chooses to exemplify how far reaching the drug war apparatus goes in surveilling and policing under-resourced people.”
“This bill is a disgraceful culmination of stigma against under-resourced people, and misguided stigma against cannabis, a medicinal plant,” Ms. Adesuyi continued. “Representative Rice is out of touch with where the rest of the nation is on the importance of ending the war on cannabis, and the needs of millions of Americans who benefit from access to cannabis.”
The political director of NORML, Justin Strekal, also spoke out against the bill and Representative Rice.
“The absurdity of this effort highlights that Tom Rice is not a statesman but rather a petulant child attempting to take a serious issue and make a mockery of it,” Mr. Strekal said. “Anyone who joins him on this bill only highlights… [t]hey are not willing to engage is serious policymaking decisions and should be voted out of office.”
Future
Republican Bill HR 4536 saw introduction in the House of Representatives on Monday. Next, HR 4536 goes to a review and a vote in the House Committee on Ways and Means. This committee previously approved a similar bill in 2018 as part of a larger jobs bill. However, the measure didn’t become law. To read the full text of HR 4536, click HERE. The bill is only two pages long as well as straightforward. When more information becomes available, we will update you with the latest.
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