CONGRESSMAN LIEU LEADS LETTER TO HOUSE LEADERSHIP URGING ADOPTION OF AMENDMENT TO REDIRECT CANNABIS ERADICATION FUNDS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D | CA-33) , Congressman Jared Polis (D | CO-2) and 10 other members of Congress have sent a letter to House leadership requesting that Congressman Lieu's amendment to redirect cannabis eradication funds be adopted into any upcoming spending bill or omnibus ahead of the December 11 deadline. Congressman Lieu's amendment, House Amendment 296 to H.R. 2578 (the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016) passed the House without any opposition from either party earlier this year.

Congressman Lieu's commonsense amendment targets $9 million dollars in the Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression Program in the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) budget and redistributes it to three accounts that play a far more useful role in promoting the safety and economic prosperity of the American people: the Violence Against Women Act Youth-Oriented Program, the Victims of Child Abuse program, and the Spending Reduction Account.

Congressman Lieu's letter to House Leadership has been endorsed by the Marijuana Policy Project and Drug Policy Alliance. The letter is co-signed by Democratic Congressmembers Earl Blumenauer, Steve Cohen, Eric Swalwell, Mark Pocan, Michael Honda, Barbara Lee, Jan Schakowsky, Raul Grijalva, Beto O'Rourke and Sam Farr.

In the letter, Congressman Lieu, Congressman Polis and their Democratic colleagues write:

"Despite both the programs' proven ineffectiveness and the seismic shift in attitudes on marijuana policy within Congress and across our nation, the DEA continues to spend millions of taxpayer dollars on its Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression Program, spending $18 million in 2014 alone."

"The language contained in this amendment, supported by an overwhelming bipartisan majority of Congress, is an important and needed step forward to cut waste from our federal budget and focus our limited resources on programs that have proven to be effective at preventing violence, assisting children who have been victimized, and promoting public health."

The full text of the letter can be found here.

###