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The lower house of U.S. Congress has cleared a key piece of legislation designed to legalize marijuana at the federal level.
After an hour of debate on Friday, the full chamber voted 220-204 to approve the MORE Act, marking the second time the bill has cleared the House. Three Republicans supported the measure, and two Democrats opposed it.
The Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act, sponsored by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), aims to remove cannabis from the list of federally controlled substances, among its other objectives.
A previous version of the MORE Act cleared the House floor in December 2020, but it stalled in the Senate.
The news of the upcoming vote on the bill propelled cannabis stocks higher late last week.
Canadian Licensed Producers: Canopy Growth (NASDAQ:CGC +0.8%), Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY +2.3%), Cronos (NASDAQ:CRON +1.5%), Aurora Cannabis (NASDAQ:ACB +1.5%), Sundial Growers (SNDL +4.2%), OrganiGram Holdings (OGI +3.0%), HEXO Corp (HEXO +0.8%)
U.S. MSOs: MedMen Enterprises (OTCQB:MMNFF +3.9%), Curaleaf Holdings (OTCPK:CURLF -0.7%), Acreage Holdings (OTCQX:ACRHF +4.8%), Harvest Health & Recreation (OTCQX:HRVSF), Cresco Labs (OTCQX:CRLBF +3.1%), Green Thumb Industries (OTCQX:GTBIF +1.1%), Trulieve Cannabis (OTCQX:TCNNF -0.5%), Ayr Wellness (OTCQX:AYRWF +0.1%), Columbia Care (OTCQX:CCHWF +2.0%), TerrAscend (OTCQX:TRSSF +4.2%)
As the lawmakers were set to consider the bill, BTIG strategist Isaac Boltansky doubted its passage through the Senate where Democrats hold a razor-thin majority.
The legislative win marks another potential catalyst for the beaten-down cannabis sector at a time both ETFMG Alternative Harvest ETF (MJ +1.0%) and AdvisorShares Pure US Cannabis ETF (MSOS +1.0%) are trading more than 50% lower than the year-ago level, as shown in this graph.
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