Biden Looks To Weed Decriminalization: What It Means For MD

MARYLAND — President Joe Biden's recent pardons for those convicted of cannabis possession won't free many from prison. The Democrat's policy, however, renews debate before Maryland's November referendum on legalizing recreational marijuana.

Biden's Thursday pardons could help more than 6,500 people with employment, housing and other opportunities. But with 149 people in federal prison for simple possession of marijuana in fiscal year 2021, the significant majority of weed-related incarceration comes from the state level.

Still, the president took two steps that could lead to policy changes.

Biden directed Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Attorney General Merrick Garland to review the substance's scheduling under federal law. Weed is classified as a Schedule I drug. That's the classification used for the most dangerous substances.

The president additionally urged governors to use their clemency powers to keep people out of jail and prison for marijuana possession.

"Just as no one should be in a Federal prison solely due to the possession of marijuana, no one should be in a local jail or state prison for that reason, either," Biden said in a statement.

Related: Biden Takes First Major Step Toward Decriminalizing Marijuana

Biden thinks limitations on trafficking, marketing and underage sales should remain in place.

Marijuana In Maryland

Reuters said 37 states, including Maryland, have legalized medical marijuana.

Maryland would be the 20th state to legalize recreational marijuana, The Washington Post reported. Journalist Karina Elwood said Washington D.C. legalized weed in 2014, and Virginia followed in 2021.

Marylanders will decide whether recreational marijuana should be legal in the Nov. 8 General Election. The state has a referendum, known as Ballot Question 4, on the matter.

If passed, residents 21 and older could use and possess up to 1.5 ounces of usable cannabis or 12 grams of concentrated cannabis.

The exact ballot question will ask "Do you favor the legalization of the use of cannabis by an individual who is at least 21 years of age on or after July 1, 2023, in the State of Maryland?"

A September poll from Goucher College, the Baltimore Banner and 88.1 FM WYPR found that most voters want to legalize recreational marijuana.

In the Goucher poll, 59 percent of Marylanders said they will vote to legalize pot. Another 34 percent plan to vote against the ballot question.

Related: Legal Recreational Marijuana MD Referendum Maintains Support: Poll

Another September poll from The Washington Post and the University of Maryland found greater support.

That survey suggested that 73 percent of registered Maryland voters favored legalizing recreational marijuana. About 23 percent opposed legalization.

If the referendum passes, 62 percent of Goucher poll respondents think Maryland should expunge and erase the records of those charged with or convicted of marijuana use and/or possession crime. About 29 percent believe the state should not expunge those records.

The law that would regulate marijuana if the measure passes will automatically expunge prior weed convictions that would become legal after the referendum, Ballotpedia reported. Anybody currently serving time for those crimes would then have permission to file for resentencing.

Related: Moore Leads Cox In MD Governor Race, Hogan Approval High: Goucher Poll

The Goucher poll had a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points for all state residents. That means there is a 95 percent chance that the actual portion of residents who share those beliefs falls within 3.1 percentage points in either direction of the values listed in the survey. If you only count the likely voters, the margin of error was +/- 3.6 percentage points.

The Washinton Post poll had a margin of error of +/- 4 percentage points.

Maryland Politicians React

U.S. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) applauded Biden's pardons. Hoyer, who represents Maryland's 5th Congressional District, also supported the president's call to reexamine marijuana's classification as a Schedule I drug.

Hoyer similarly pushed for federal laws decriminalizing marijuana and expunging past non-violent weed offenses.

"For decades, the unequal enforcement of marijuana laws has broken up families and torn communities apart," Hoyer said in a press release. "No one deserves to serve a prison sentence simply for using or possessing marijuana."

Maryland's highest-ranking Republicans have not yet commented on Biden's marijuana policy. Gov. Larry Hogan, U.S. Rep. Andy Harris and gubernatorial candidate Dan Cox have not yet issued any statements about weed on Facebook or Twitter.

Hogan in April let the bill that would regulate recreational marijuana take effect without his signature.

Harris has not mentioned marijuana publicly since Biden's pardons. On the same date as Biden's announcement, however, Harris condemned a harder drug.

"Fentanyl is the number one cause of overdose death in America and the cartels are now bringing it through our wide open southern border as rainbow colored candy," the District 1 representative said on Facebook. "If you don’t prosecute crime, you get more crime—Period."

Editor's Note: Patch Field Editor Josh Bakan originally wrote this story for the New Jersey Patch. Field Editor Jacob Baumgart adapted it and added local context for the Maryland Patch.