The president of an advocacy group is looking to bolster up opposition for a bill that would allow deductions and credits relating to marijuana sales.
Founder of Americans for Tax Reform Grover Norquist is looking to gain votes from congressional members against H.R. 2240, the Small Business Tax Equity Act - a tiny bill introduced in June by Oregon Democrat Earl Blumenauer, according to TIME. Norquist has already garnered support from 219 reps, along with 39 Senators who have all promised to fight tax hikes.
Norquist said the federal government intruding upon the issue of marijuana regulation by state power is a significant issue.
"There's always a slight giggle factor on the issue of dealing with marijuana," Norquist told TIME. "That said, this is tax policy, this is real stuff. This is important. This is everything from jobs to whether the federal government comes in and writes rules that upset the apple cart in many, many different states."
For Norquist, taxing marijuana dispensaries should be up to the states to decide; as private businesses, these pot stores should be able to claim expense deductions as any other company can.
"In Colorado and some of these other states, marijuana dispensaries are just legal businesses," he said. "They should be treated that way. But federal law makes that difficult to impossible. We've got to take the IRS out of this issue."
Cannabis advocates largely regard marijuana taxation even being discussed on a federal level as a win - in August, the White House said it wouldn't encroach upon Colorado and Washington's legalization of marijuana, as long as "strong and effective regulatory and enforcement systems to control the cultivation, distribution, sale and possession of marijuana," were put into effect, according to the Justice Department.
Marijuana is still illegal under federal law.
Norquist's group, Americans for Tax Reform, aims to lower taxes that will, in turn, cut the federal government's overall control.
"The government's power to control one's life derives from its power to tax," the ATR writes on its website. "We believe that power should be minimized."
