REFER Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1455 To protect States and individuals in States that have laws which permit the use of cannabis, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 28, 2019 Ms. LEE of California (for herself, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. NEGUSE, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. PRESSLEY, and Ms. GABBARD) intro- duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Ju- diciary, and in addition to the Committees on Financial Services, and En- ergy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To protect States and individuals in States that have laws which permit the use of cannabis, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Restraining Excessive 4 Federal Enforcement & Regulations of Cannabis Act of 5 2019’’ or the ‘‘REFER Act of 2019’’. 6 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1455.IH H1455 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 1455 IH SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON THE USE OF FUNDS. 1 None of the funds made available by any Act of Con- 2 gress to any department or agency of the United States 3 may be used to— 4 (1) prevent a State or unit of local government 5 from implementing or maintaining its State law or 6 regulation that authorizes the use, distribution, pos- 7 session, or cultivation of cannabis; 8 (2) detain, prosecute, sentence, or initiate civil 9 proceedings against an individual, business or prop- 10 erty, that is involved in the cultivation, distribution, 11 possession, dispensation, or use of cannabis, in ac- 12 cordance with the law or regulation of the State or 13 unit of local government in which the individual is 14 located; or 15 (3) penalize a financial institution solely be- 16 cause the institution provides financial services to an 17 entity that is a manufacturer, producer, or a person 18 that participates in any business or organized activ- 19 ity that involves handling cannabis or cannabis prod- 20 ucts, or any related activity, and engages in such ac- 21 tivity pursuant to a law or regulation established by 22 a State or a unit of local government in which the 23 financial institution is located. 24 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 25 In this Act: 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1455.IH H1455 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 1455 IH (1) The term ‘‘financial institution’’ has the 1 meaning given such term in section 5312 of title 31, 2 United States Code. 3 (2) The term ‘‘State’’ means any State, the 4 District of Columbia, any territory or possession of 5 the United States, or any Indian tribal government. 6 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:09 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H1455.IH H1455 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS