Analysts at Chardan Capital Markets recently took a look at the six bills related to marijuana that are working their way through Congress.
Chardan released a report with a breakdown of the current marijuana bills and a summary of the issue that they believe is the most pressing legal matter legislators have yet to address when it comes to marijuana.
Current Bills
1. HR 262 would exempt medical-marijuana related conduct from real property civil forfeiture under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).
2. HR 667 would authorize healthcare providers at the Department of Veterans Affairs to recommend state marijuana programs to veterans.
3. HR 1013 would remove marijuana from the CSA all together and give the FDA the same authority over marijuana that it currently has over alcohol. It would also move marijuana jurisdiction from the DEA to the ATFE.
4. HR 1014 would impose a two-year 10 percent recreational marijuana tax that would increase up to 25 percent after five years.
5. HR 1538, which has not been yet been made available, is intended to “extend the principle of federalism to state drug policy, provide access to medical marijuana and enable research into the medicinal properties of marijuana.”
6. S 683 would move marijuana from Schedule I of the CSA to Schedule II and allow banks to accept deposits from growers and retailers.
Glaring Omission
According to the report, the obvious omission from all these bills is any reform on Provision 280 of the tax code.
Typically, a business is allowed to deduct business expenses such as advertising costs, rent, utilities and employee salaries from earned income prior to paying federal tax. However, under the current code, marijuana-based businesses are not afforded this luxury.
Outlook
Analysts believe the legal U.S. marijuana industry is “in its early growth stage.” Chardan predicts that the American marijuana market could eventually reach the size of its alcohol market, a $200 billion annual business.
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