{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.gardner.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/gardner-warren-announce-bipartisan-bill-to-address-immigration-in-the-state-legal-cannabis-industry", "Gardner, Warren Announce Bipartisan Bill to Address Immigration in the State-Legal Cannabis Industry", "2019-12-18", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "CO", "Cory Gardner", "G000562", "www.gardner.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, D.C. U.S. Senators Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) today announced the introduction of bipartisan legislation that would remove participation in the state-legal cannabis industry from the list of activities that automatically bar naturalization.\r\nIn April, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)issued guidancein its policy manual making clear that because cannabis is still a Schedule 1 substance under the Controlled Substances Act, an applicant that is employed in the state-legal cannabis industry cannot establish good moral character  even if the applicant has not been convicted of an offense and has always acted in compliance with state law. This legislation would amend immigration law to allow applicants who comply with state cannabis laws to demonstrate that they have good moral character and should not be barred from naturalization.\r\nUnder current law, individuals are deemed to lack good moral character' and denied American citizenship due to their work in the legal cannabis industry in states like Colorado and Massachusetts. This has to stop.said Senator Gardner.Currently95 percent of Americans are living in states with laws allowing some form of cannabis. The dramatically expanded cannabis industry presents real challenges for our nation, and I'm proud to be working with Senator Warren toaddress these issues.\r\nNo one should have to worry about being denied naturalization for working in their state's legal cannabis industry,said Senator Warren.Our bipartisan bill would ensure that outdated federal cannabis laws don't block the pathway to citizenship for those seeking it through naturalization.\r\nIn addition to today's announcement, Senators Warren and Gardner announced another bipartisanbillthat would prohibit the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from denying veterans VA-backed home loans based on their employment in their state's legal cannabis industry. Currently, cannabis is considered illegal under federal law, and as a result, the VA can deny home loans to veterans whose verified income is earned from working in their state's legal cannabis industry.\r\nSenators Gardner and Warren alsoreintroducedthe Strengthening the Tenth Amendment Through Entrusting States Act (STATES Act) in April 2019. Both senators originallyintroducedthe STATES Act in 2018.\r\n###\r\nCory Gardner is a member of the U.S. Senate serving Colorado. He sits on the Energy & Natural Resources Committee, the Foreign Relations Committee, the Commerce, Science, & Transportation Committee, and is the Chairman of the Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.gardner.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/gardner-warren-announce-bipartisan-bill-to-address-immigration-in-the-state-legal-cannabis-industry"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4340190682560205, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}