Congress Bill Would Label Cannabis Ads as High-Risk
A bipartisan bill introduced in Congress would place cannabis in a high-risk category for online advertising, alongside tobacco and alcohol. The SAFE Platforms Act would require platforms to verify cannabis advertisers’ identities, review their business histories, and re-verify them periodically. The article examines what this means for state-licensed medical marijuana operators and commercial speech protections.
A bipartisan proposal, H.R. 10433, introduced by Rep. Valerie Foushee and Del. James Moylan, targets online fraud against older and vulnerable users. Within it, cannabis would join tobacco, alcohol, crypto, unregulated financial products, and gambling in a high-risk advertising class. Platforms would need to verify cannabis advertisers’ identities, examine their business records, and repeat checks periodically; the FTC could later add more industries.
This arrives amid other federal measures: the House-passed KIDS Act and a Senate committee’s Kids Online Safety Act companion both address cannabis ads reaching minors. Meanwhile, Schedule III rescheduling may affect how courts treat commercial speech by state-licensed medical cannabis businesses under Central Hudson.
The proposal could affect state-licensed medical cannabis businesses by adding verification steps before online ads run, potentially raising compliance costs and limiting outreach. Patients may see fewer cannabis promotions, while platforms could face new review duties. If rescheduling changes how courts treat cannabis commercial speech, these requirements may face legal testing. Broader scam protections could help vulnerable users, though cannabis businesses may feel singled out compared with other lawful industries.