A Senate committee has amended an intelligence oversight bill by adding a provision that prevents agencies from refusing security clearances solely because of past marijuana use.
The Senate Intelligence Committee unanimously approved the Intelligence Authorization Act Wednesday, after voting 10-7 in favor of an amendment proposed to it by Sen. Ron Wyden. This amendment would prohibit denials of security clearances to applicants for intelligence agencies such as CIA and NSA because they had admitted to previous cannabis consumption.
Wyden, in a Thursday press release, said that the bill included bipartisan legislation to reform the broken classification and declassification systems of this country. The bill includes my provision that ensures cannabis use won’t disqualify applicants for the intelligence community from serving their nation. This is a sensible change that will ensure the IC has the best possible recruits. ”
The senator submitted a wider amendment to the version of authorization legislation from last year that would have prohibited employment discrimination on the basis of prior or current cannabis use in any federal department. This included those who deal with intelligence.
The provision was rewritten under a second degree amendment by the chairman of the panel before it was adopted by the committee. The reform was quashed after two GOP senators refused to attach to the National Defense Authorization Act if it contained marijuana language.
A committee spokesperson told Marijuana Moment that the text of the latest amendement won’t be released until it has been processed by legislative counsel.
Wyden’s description suggests that the committee adopted something similar to , the more narrowly tailored proposal which was adopted in last year.
In a press statement, Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA stated that the bill as a whole “furthers Committee efforts to reform security clearance processes, so that IC can attract, diversify, and quickly on-board a skilled, trusted workforce in order to meet the new challenges we face.”
Wyden raised the issue in March with Director of National Intelligence Avril haines during a hearing before a Senate committee.
Haines stated, “We are aware that many states have decriminalized or legalized marijuana and we wanted to make sure that people were not disqualified solely because of that.”
She added, “We believe we want the talent in America. And when someone is using [cannabis] in an experimental state it shouldn’t be enough to disqualify them.” “We are continuing to look at this from the perspective of the whole person. We expect that anyone who takes on the position will comply with our policies, our laws and be in a trustworthy position.
In 2021, the DNI released a memo stating that federal employers should not reject security clearance candidates based on past usage and also exercise discretion with those who have cannabis investments in their portfolios.
The House passed a bill legalizing marijuana in the United States last year. Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-MD, filed an amendment that would have required federal agencies to review denials of security clearances dating back to 1971, and to retroactively prohibit cannabis from being used as a “reason to deny or to revoke a security clearance.” However, this measure was narrowly rejected during a floor vote.
Raskin said later that he would be submitting a standalone law on the subject but hasn’t yet done so.
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The U.S. Secret Service has recently updated its policy on employment to be more accommodating for applicants who have previously used marijuana. Candidates of any age are now eligible to apply one year after their last consumption. There were previously stricter restrictions based on age.
ATF has also updated its cannabis rules for job candidates. The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has also revised its cannabis rules for job applicants.
In 2020, the FBI changed its hiring policy so that candidates would only be automatically disqualified if they admitted to using marijuana within a year before applying. Prior to 2020, the FBI prohibited prospective employees from having used cannabis in the last three years.
In 2014, former FBI director James Comey suggested that he would relax the employment policies of the agency in relation to marijuana as skilled workers were being overlooked due to this requirement.
He said, “I need to hire an excellent work force to compete against those cyber criminals. Some of these kids want to smoke marijuana on their way to the interview.”
In 2020, the CIA stated that it does not necessarily believe that using illegal drugs will make you a bad person.
Marijuana Moment obtained draft documents late last year that showed the federal Office of Personnel Management was proposing to replace several job application forms in a manner that would deal with past cannabis use much more leniently under current policy.
In 2021, the Biden administration implemented a policy that allows waivers for certain workers that admit to previous marijuana use. However, certain legislators have called for further reform.
According to a recent survey, 30 percent of people between 18 and 30 either refused to apply or withdrew their applications because of the strict marijuana policies that are required for security clearances.
House passes unanimously resolution supporting American imprisoned for medical marijuana in Russia
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