Good Drug Policy Bills to Be Introduced in Congress This Week

Last April we reported that US Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO) was planning to introduce a bill to fully legalize marijuana. That is happening this week -- tomorrow, according to Mike Riggs at Reason -- though Barney Frank (D-MA) is taking the lead, with Polis as a cosponsor. Ron Paul (R-TX) is the sole Republican cosponsor.

Possibly this week, and soon in any case, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) is reintroducing the "Major Drug Traffickers Prosecution Act." From her remarks at DPA's press conference last week:

This bill is similar to previous legislation that I have introduced since 1999, and it would begin to implement one of the suggested criminal justice reforms recommended by the Global Commission on Drug Policy.  The Major Drug Traffickers Prosecution Act of 2011 will: curb federal prosecutions of low-level and non-violent drug offenders; re-focus scarce federal resources to prosecute major drug kingpins, and give courts and judges greater discretion to place drug users on probation or suspend the sentence entirely.  Under this bill, judges will be able to make individualized determinations and take into account a defendant’s individual and unique circumstances rather than being held to a stringent sentencing requirement prescribed by Congress.

Check back for updates and action alerts supporting these two important bills.