President Biden's marijuana pardons are 'historic and monumental': Trulieve CEO

Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers joins Yahoo Finance Live to share her thoughts on President Biden's decision to pardon prior federal offenses for simple marijuana possession and what it means for the cannabis industry.

Video Transcript

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- Some big breaking news now on cannabis reform. President Biden announcing about an hour ago that the administration will pardon all federal offenses of simple marijuana possession. They'll also urge states governors to do the same and asked the HHS Secretary and Attorney General to re-examine how cannabis is scheduled. As you might expect, shares of marijuana stocks soaring on this news. We are talking a minimum increase around 20% for a lot of the big names.

And check it out here, Aurora, Canopy, Curaleaf, Green Thumb, and Trulieve, one the biggest gainers on the day is with us now. Trulieve up 36% on this news. We're joined now by the CEO of Trulieve, Kim Rivers. Kim, nice to see you. First, there had been a lot of negative sentiment regarding the Biden administration and how they handled cannabis. Just your reaction to this U-turn.

KIM RIVERS: Well, I mean, better late than never is what I would say. And I'm really thankful that President Biden did step up and fulfill one of his campaign promises which was, of course, as he stated early on, that no one should be in jail for cannabis use or possession. So we've gotten the possession side of things at the federal level today, which, of course, is historic and is very, very important. And so I do want to pause and say thank you. And hopefully, this is the first of many steps in the right direction, as it relates to reform.

I'm also very hopeful that, of course, the governors will follow suit at the state level as there are many, many more folks incarcerated at the state level for possession as well. And so hopefully, this will start a movement there.

- President Biden tweeting, "As I've said before, no one should be in jail for just using or possessing marijuana. Today, I'm taking steps to end our failed approach." Let's talk about the third aspect here, which is examining the scheduling of cannabis. How significant is that news?

KIM RIVERS: You know, that's, again, that is historic and monumental. As President Biden correctly pointed out, currently, marijuana is scheduled the same as heroin. I think we could all believe-- we can all agree that is simply laughable at this point. There are millions of Americans who utilize cannabis legally under state programs today for health and well-being, and, of course, also, recreationally under adult use programs as alternatives to alcohol, as an example.

And so certainly, it sends a strong signal that this administration is taking proactive steps to reexamine how this country has categorized marijuana historically. And again, hopefully, this is the beginning of a conversation that is long overdue as it relates to significant and substantive reform.

- Kim, clearly, investors are optimistic of federal legalization. We mentioned your stock popping 36% on this news. Are you more optimistic of legalization than you were a few hours ago?

KIM RIVERS: You know, I think that this market and this sector has been fairly held back as a result of the lack of federal action. I think that coming into a Democratic-controlled House and Congress, coupled with a presidency, who ran on promises of cannabis reform, the sector has been stagnated and waiting for a substantive step forward, which I think was provided today.

So you know, there has been a lot of work that's been done in both chambers-- actually, bipartisan work that's been done in both chambers and conversations around substantive frameworks. And again this is going to take some work, so I do want to say that, because it is a complex issue. And we do need to make sure that we get it right. And that we are thoughtful and comprehensive. And that we have a resulting ecosystem that is encompassing and is one that is sustainable.

But certainly, I am encouraged, for sure, that this is that first step that I believe that the market and certainly that we've been looking for.

- I'm hearing cautious optimism. Give me a time frame, how long do you think we are before federal legalization? And the biggest obstacle here has been just getting Safe Banking through the Senate passed the House now a half a dozen times. When can that get done?

KIM RIVERS: Well, so, you know, certainly Safe Banking is teed up and ready to go. It has been for quite some time. It's been passed numerous occasions-- on numerous occasions in the House. And of course, on the Senate, there's been a lot of conversation around Safe Banking as a standalone or Safe Banking paired with some sort of additional criminal justice reform. Actually, expungement was-- and certainly, making sure that we have remedies for folks who are in prison to this today actually is a big step to help that and perhaps, will then spur an action on Safe Banking, which we certainly were hopeful would happen before the end of the year.

I can tell you that in terms of full-blown legalization, again, that is going to take some work. We do need to make sure that it is a thoughtful program that is-- does ensure that folks who are currently utilizing cannabis are able to continue. That we are thoughtful about how that product is regulated. And that is safety of course, is of paramount concern. And that also, again, the ecosystem that's developed is one that is inclusive and diverse. And again, I just I think that we do need to make sure that we can all stand behind that result.

But in terms of when that can happen, there are a lot of measures in the legislature that have been drafted. There are bills that are literally sitting and waiting to go. There's framework bills. There's bills that address research and safety. So there's a lot of work that is ready and can come to fruition quickly, if the political will is there to actually dig in and lean into this issue and begin to get some things passed out.

So I think that, again, President Biden's support and his signaling that he is willing to spend some political capital on this and to in a signal to Congress that this is an issue that's important, which it should be, because it's important to the American voters. The American acceptance rate, as it relates to cannabis, has only increased since President Biden has been in office. Poll after poll shows that Americans want legal reform and legal access to cannabis.

So no surprise there. And again, hopeful that this is the first of many steps to come.

- In searching for Republican reaction, can't find much. Congresswoman Nancy Mace did tweet, "Applaud the administration for their necessary big step forward in bringing justice to so many." She is one of the few Republican supporters in the House of cannabis legislation. Still waiting for some Senate comments. Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers, nice to see you as always. Thank you.