Ron Paul, Barney Frank Introduce Pot Legalization Bill

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Rep. Barney Frank (D., Mass.) and Rep. Ron Paul (R., Texas) introduced a bill in Congress on Thursday that would lift the federal prohibition on marijuana.

The Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2011 would remove "marihuana" and "tetrahydrocannabinols" -- the main chemical substance that induces the effects of pot -- from the U.S. list of controlled substances.

As the District of Columbia and 16 states have legalized medicinal use of marijuana, we want readers to tell us if the time is right for the federal government to deregulate cannabis in the United States. Feel free to leave comments below, or head over the TheStreet to cast your vote in our pot poll.

The bill prohibits shipping or transportation of marijuana across state and U.S. international borders.

"I do not advocate urging people to smoke marijuana," Frank said. "Neither do I urge them to drink alcoholic beverages or smoke tobacco. But in none of these cases do I think prohibition enforced by criminal sanctions is good public policy."

It also says that the act should not be construed to affect federal drug-testing policies. Instead, it says those policies should be reviewed on an agency-by-agency basis no later than 30 days after enactment.

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