Thor Benson / Cannabis News Box Contributor

The National Association of Counties (NACo) recently called for the federal government to stay away from cannabis. They want states to be able to legalize cannabis without having to worry about the federal government interfering, as trusty Attorney General Jeff Sessions so desperately wants to do.

“NACo urges Congress to enact legislation that promotes the principles of federalism and local control of cannabis businesses with regard to medical and adult-use of cannabis under state law,” they wrote. “Congress should allow and encourage state and local governments to enact and implement cannabis laws, regulations, and policies that appropriately control production, processing, sales, distribution, and use, as well as promote public and consumer safety, should they choose to decriminalize and regulate cannabis under state law.”

Local leaders across the country have been saying things like this—essentially arguing that legalization is a states’ rights issue. As Marijuana Moment notes, this is similar to the action called for by the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

“The United States Conference of Mayors urges the White House, U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to immediately remove cannabis from the schedule of the CSA to enable U.S. federal banking regulators to permanently authorize financial institutions to provide services to commercial cannabis businesses, and increase the safety of the public,” the U.S. Conference of Mayors wrote recently.

Neither of these groups has called for full legalization of cannabis at the federal level, but they are mostly focused on regional issues, so that’s not necessarily surprising. NACo also called for banking reform related to cannabis, which is something that affects every part of the cannabis industry in every state.

“Each year, county government leaders convene to formulate our policy agenda for the coming year,” Fred Wong, communications director for NACo, told Cannabis News Box. “What you see in the vigorous policy dialogue that took place at our Annual Conference are leaders at the county government level who are doing their best to safeguard the health and safety of our residents, while deconflicting the policies of our colleagues at the federal and state level.”

The group argues the federal government should be focusing on illegal drug trafficking and not going after legal businesses that support many communities. They see it as harmful and a waste of resources for the federal government to be bothering people who are fully compliant with state and local laws. With multiple bills in Congress looking to accomplish exactly what they’re hoping for, we could soon see if they get their wish.