Rohrabacher–Farr amendment

The Rohrabacher–Farr amendment is legislation first introduced by U.S. Reps. Maurice Hinchey, Dana Rohrabacher, and Sam Farr in 2003, prohibiting the Justice Department from spending funds to interfere with the implementation of state medical marijuana laws. It passed the House in May 2014 after six previously failed attempts, becoming law in December 2014 as part of an omnibus spending bill. The passage of the amendment was the first time either chamber of Congress had voted to protect medical marijuana patients, and is viewed as a historic victory for marijuana reform advocates at the federal level. The amendment does not change the legal status of marijuana however, and must be renewed each fiscal year in order to remain in effect.

Initially known as the Hinchey–Rohrabacher amendment with U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey as its chief sponsor, the amendment was defeated by a vote of 152–273 upon its initial introduction in 2003. It was defeated five more times over the next decade until it passed the House by a 219–189 vote on May 30, 2014, as an attachment to the CJS Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2015. The amendment was then introduced in the Senate by Sens. Rand Paul and Cory Booker on June 18, but did not receive a vote. In December, however, the amendment was inserted (without a vote) into the $1.1 trillion "cromnibus" spending bill as part of final negotiations, and the bill was signed into law by President Obama on December 16, 2014.

The Rohrabacher–Farr amendment passed the House for a second time on June 3, 2015, by a 242–186 vote. It was voted on by members of the Senate for the first time on June 11, 2015, winning approval in a 21–9 Appropriations Committee vote led by sponsor Barbara Mikulski. The amendment remained in the FY 2016 omnibus appropriations bill that was signed into law by President Obama on December 18, 2015.

...
Wikipedia