Lawmakers in the nation’s capital introduced HR Bill 420 this week. Filed by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D. OR.), the piece of legislation, aside from making teens giggle due to its name, calls for cannabis to be regulated as alcoholic beverages are, and would remove cannabis as a Schedule 1 substance. Blumenaur, you’ll recall, was the Congressman who also introduced the “Legalization Blueprint” last fall.

While the latest US Congress is hardly a week old, they have been, as the youths say, “gettin’ bizzay” with cannabis legislation in a move that is sure to further thrill America’s teens and cannabis-compliance bloggers alike. Let’s recap what cannabis-related bills have been introduced so far.

Rep. Morgan Griffith’s (R. VA.) Third “LUMMA” Medical Marijuana Bill

Republican Morgan Griffith has for the third consecutive Congressional session introduced a similarly worded bill calling for medical marijuana to essentially be legalized and for the federal government to not interfere with a given state’s decision to allow medical MJ. #StatesRights and all that jazz. Notably, Griffith is against adult-use legalization.

The Bipartisan CARERS Act

Tennessee’s Steve Cohen (D.) and Don Young (R. AK.) introduced the Compassionate Access, Research Expansion and Respect States Act (CARERS). Again, this is all about not only [southern voice] “STATES’ RIGHTS!” but also about compassionate and reasonable medical options for pain mitigation, in addition to better researching cannabis and its effects.

As more and more states begin to adopt medical marijuana as a safer option to opioids for painkillers, it only makes sense that the federal government begins to adapt and update its policies towards medical marijuana. As we all are aware, the writing is on the wall for adult-use legalization on the federal level, but while that clock ticks ever closer, by the book, compassionate and reasonable adoption of medical marijuana bills on the national level are the progress we’re seeing for now.