Biden Administration Set to Reschedule Cannabis

The Biden administration announced that it is officially moving to reschedule cannabis from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug under federal law. The Department of Justice submitted a notice of proposed rule-making to the Federal Register on May 16 initiating a formal rule-making process to reclassify the drug.

A Schedule I drug is classified as having a high potential for abuse with no accepted medical use, while Schedule III drugs are defined as those with a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence. Rescheduling cannabis to Schedule III would federally recognize the medical use of the drug and acknowledge that it has less risk for misuse.

“Too many lives have been upended because of our failed approach to marijuana,” President Joe Biden stated in a post on social platform X.

At Biden’s request, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the DOJ studied the drug’s medical use and dependency potential and recommended the rescheduling.

Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), a lead sponsor of the SAFER Banking Act, which would ensure legal businesses are able to access banking services, shared his support for this proposal.

“The Biden administration rescheduling cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III is welcome news and an important step in the right direction. We cannot let up momentum, though. Cannabis has not been descheduled, so we still have work to do,” Merkley said in a statement.

Merkley believes the SAFER Banking Act remains necessary and plans to continue to push for the full descheduling of cannabis, as well as championing restorative justice legislation.

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) also shared his excitement following the announcement. “It’s official, the Biden administration has taken a historic step toward ending reefer madness and bringing commonsense to federal cannabis policy. Now it’s time to follow the lead of 24 states and more than half the country by decriminalizing and putting in place smart federal regulations,” said Wyden.

Smart Approaches to Marijuana, an alliance that says it promotes a health-first approach to marijuana policy, intends to oppose the rescheduling recommendation, stating the decision would allow the industry to take tax deductions on advertising expenses.

“This is setting the stage to create the Big Tobacco of our time. It will also surely send the message that marijuana is a safe drug and an approved medicine,” read a statement from SAM President Dr. Kevin Sabet.

Marijuana has been classified as a Schedule I drug since Congress enacted the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, according to the DOJ. The process of rescheduling a controlled substance follows a formal rulemaking procedure, with a required notice to the public and an opportunity for comment and a hearing.

Now that the proposal has been submitted, the Drug Enforcement Administration will gather and consider information submitted by the public before deciding on the appropriate schedule.