U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, a Democrat from Newton whose district includes Taunton, has partnered with a Republican congressman from Texas to introduce legislation that would make marijuana criminalization the business of state governments.
Frank and Libertarian-leaning Rep. Ron Paul introduced HR 2306 on Thursday in Washington, D.C. The bill doesn’t necessarily legalize marijuana but takes it off a list of federally controlled substances and lets states decide how to regulate it.
The bill would also eliminate federally provided marijuana-specific penalties in the Controlled Substances Act.
The legislation maintains the illegality of transporting marijuana across state lines. Instead, it would allow individuals to grow and sell marijuana if they are in a state that chooses to make it legal.
READ MORE: US Rep. Barney Frank looking to end federal pot penalties
The Enterprise (Brockton), June 24, 2011