The Rohrabacher-Blumenauer Amendment, also known as the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment, which protects states with medical cannabis from federal interference, officially expires on April 28 after a previous extension. Late Wednesday night, on April 26, however, Republican Representative Rodney Frelinghuysen, Chair of the House Appropriations Committee, introduced a continuing resolution (CR) that will provide one week of stop-gap funding, which essentially extends the entire spending bill deadline to May 5. The purpose of this latest extension is again, to provide Congress with more time to negotiate federal funding and avoid a government shutdown.

Nicole L’Esperance, Communications Director for Representative Earl Blumenauer confirmed with CULTURE that the larger spending bill for the 2017 federal budget will be extended to May 5, leaving the true outcome of this issue up in the air. Sulzen reassured us that Representative Blumenauer was doing everything in his power to make sure that this bill gets renewed and that states’ rights to medical cannabis will remain protected.

The CR is expected to pass the House and Senate, and if it does, it will successfully prevent a government shutdown, at least for one more week. Democratic House Whip Steny Hoyer told reporters Thursday, April 27 that he would vote against the short-term funding bill if Republicans tried to run through their renewed health bill this week. House Republicans say that they are planning on coming to an agreement on the larger omnibus spending bill that combines 11 different appropriations bills into one spending package by Friday.

The Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment was introduced by U.S. Representatives Maurice Hinchey, Dana Rohrabacher and Sam Farr in 2003. Since Sam Farr retired in 2015, the bill has been renamed the Rohracher-Blumenauer Amendment. The bill prohibits the Department of Justice from using funds to interfere with states that have allowed medical cannabis. The bill finally became law in December 2014 as part of an omnibus spending bill.

Representatives Rohrabacher and Blumenauer pled with the federal government with a passionate letter to continue protecting patients and the states right to give their residents safe access to medical cannabis. “As you prepare the fiscal year 2018 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies appropriations bill, we respectfully request that you include language barring the Department of Justice from prosecuting those who comply with the wishes of a bipartisan majority of the members of the House, but also with the wishes of the American people,” wrote Rohrabacher and Blumenauer in a signed letter earlier this month.

Federal and state laws are at odds for the time being. Jeff Sessions now mans the helm of the Department of Justice as Attorney General and with his anti-cannabis past, advocates are worried about the future of cannabis in America. Representatives Rohrabacher and Blumenauer are working hard to ensure that the amendment is included in the federal spending bill.