Opinion: Biden Budget Is Out of Touch With Americans' Views On Cannabis

In response to President Biden's proposed 2023 budget, US Cannabis Council CEO Steven Hawkins released the following statement:

"The nation's capital could be a model for how to get cannabis legalization right. Instead, it's the very opposite, and President Biden now shares some of the blame

"DC voters overwhelmingly approved cannabis legalization in 2014, but the district government has been prevented by a legislative rider from implementing regulated cannabis sales. This has fueled a dangerous gray market that operates without any standards or safeguards and brazenly targets underage consumers. President Biden's budget just embraced this unacceptable prohibition.

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"No one expects cannabis reform to be top of mind for a president facing down Russia, inflation and COVID-19. However, President Biden has consistently passed up opportunities to make good on his campaign commitments to pardon non-violent offenders, fund expungement programs, boost research and give states autonomy over their medical and adult-use programs. In some cases, the administration has even gone in reverse on cannabis.

"This is an election year, and Americans are looking to President Biden and Congressional leaders to make good on their pledges. We are disappointed by today's news but optimistic about the prospects for reform this session. The president and Congress will have critical opportunities in the coming weeks and months to make real progress on cannabis criminal justice and banking reform. Voters are paying attention."

The preceding article is from one of our external contributors. It does not represent the opinion of Benzinga and has not been edited.