Congress studies federal cannabis legalization with criminal justice reform at center
H.R. 2935 — PREPARE Act of 2025 · Filed by David Joyce (R-OH) · 2 cosponsors · Introduced Apr 17, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill creates a federal Commission on the Federal Regulation of Cannabis to study how the U.S. government could transition from cannabis prohibition to a regulated legal framework modeled on alcohol regulation. The Commission will include representatives from 25+ federal agencies, state cannabis regulators, industry participants, criminal justice reform advocates, and formerly incarcerated individuals. It will hold public hearings, solicit stakeholder input, and deliver recommendations within one year on how to address barriers to legalization—including criminal justice reform, financial access for cannabis businesses, medical research, and interstate commerce rules.
Why we flagged it
The bill's sole operative mechanism is the establishment of a fact-finding commission with no rulemaking authority. It is a procedural/investigative bill, not a substantive legalization or deregulation measure. The commission's role is to study and recommend, not to enact policy.
What the text implies
- The commission's findings and recommendations, while non-binding, will likely shape future federal cannabis policy and could accelerate legislative movement toward legalization or rescheduling.
- Inclusion of multi-state cannabis operators and industry representatives in public hearings may amplify industry voices in the regulatory design process, potentially influencing the final framework in ways favorable to larger operators.
- The alcohol-regulatory model explicitly referenced may not account for cannabis's unique pharmacology, potency variation, or public health concerns distinct from alcohol, potentially creating regulatory gaps.
- The commission's one-year timeline is aggressive for comprehensive study of a complex, multi-jurisdictional policy area; rushed recommendations could overlook implementation challenges or unintended consequences.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
The bill creates a transparent, inclusive study process that centers criminal justice reform (particularly for minorities and low-income communities), medical access, and research—all documented public harms of prohibition. It does not legalize cannabis or grant immunity to any private party; it only mandates a fact-finding commission with no rulemaking power. The process explicitly includes formerly incarcerated individuals and criminal justice advocates, ensuring accountability to those harmed
Who stands to gain
- cannabis cultivators and retailers (state-licensed operators)
- cannabis industry ancillary services (testing, packaging, logistics)
- financial services firms (banking, insurance) seeking cannabis-sector clients
- pharmaceutical companies with cannabis-derived products
Named in the bill
Attorney General, Commission on the Federal Regulation of Cannabis, Department of Justice, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Department of Education, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Trade Representative — and 8 more
Where it stands
2 cosponsors: 1 Democrats, 1 Republicans.
- Apr 17, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Apr 17, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Financial Services and House Committee on Agriculture · Congress.gov: “Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, Ways…”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Money around this bill
2 lobbying clients named this bill on 4 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $640,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 7 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.
More lobbying clients named this bill than 41% of bills with at least one filing.
David Joyce, the sponsor, reported $984,500 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.
- Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America Inc — $610,000 on 2 filings
- Students for Sensible Drug Policy — $30,000 on 2 filings
Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (14,809 characters) on Aug 18, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
Money — Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act filings whose specific-issue field names this bill for quarters ending Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. A filing's amount is reported whole beside the median number of bills a filing names; it is never divided across them. PAC receipts are FEC-reported contributions to the sponsor's candidate committee in the 2026 cycle.
As of — lobbying records through Jul 20, 2026 · page rendered 2026-10-20.
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