A cannabis pre-roll takes place during a legalization anniversary event in Cranston, Rhode Island on December 1, 2023. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday loosening federal restrictions on marijuana, a move Trump said reflects the drug’s potential medical benefits while discouraging recreational marijuana utilize.
The order moves cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III on the Federal Medicines Agency’s list of controlled substances. Schedule I, the most restrictive category in federal law, indicates a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical value.
Trump said the move reflects the fact that cannabis can have medicinal value even if abuse is still possible.
The order “does not legalize marijuana in any way, shape or form and in no way sanctions its use as a recreational drug,” Trump said. “Just as prescription painkillers may have legal uses, but they can also cause irreversible harm… recreational use of potent controlled substances is never safe.”
Still, the order is an vital step in the decades-long liberalization of cannabis policy.
Since 2012, when voters in Washington and Colorado legalized personal utilize of marijuana, 22 other states have legalized at least some recreational utilize. Only 10 states still restrict both medicinal and recreational utilize.
In a statement, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, praised Trump while calling for further reforms to bring federal law in line with states where the drug is legal.
“I thank the president and am glad they are finally taking this step to begin the rescheduling process,” Polis wrote. “Colorado’s cannabis industry is the gold standard for ensuring products are safe and regulated. It’s good to see that the federal government has finally followed suit, but it’s frustrating that it has taken so long and there is still a lot of work to be done to completely move the timeline.”
President Joe Biden started the process for changing the drug administration schedule last year.
Medical angle
A group of administration officials and doctors accompanied Trump to the Oval Office signing, and some spoke about the potential medical benefits of marijuana, including as an alternative to highly addictive opioid painkillers.
“The facts compel the federal government to recognize that marijuana can be legal for medical purposes if used carefully,” Trump said.
Proponents say it is nearly impossible to study marijuana’s potential benefits because of strict restrictions on Schedule I substances.
Removing cannabis from the schedule would facilitate ease those restrictions, Trump said.
“This reclassification provision will greatly facilitate medical research related to marijuana by allowing us to explore benefits, potential risks and future treatments,” he said. “It will have an extremely positive impact.”
In addition to researchers, the disconnect between federal law and the legal landscape in many states has created challenges for industry, users and law enforcement, among others.
For example, the unusual position of state-law businesses in a federally prohibited industry means they cannot take advantage of certain tax laws, have access to certain banking facilities, or transport their products across state lines.
In a lengthy statement, Paul Armentano, deputy director of the leading marijuana legalization group, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, praised the move, saying it “validates the experiences” of patients who have used marijuana to treat chronic pain and other conditions.
“This directive certainly marks a long-overdue change in direction,” Armentano said. “But while such a move potentially provides some benefits to patients, and especially veterans, it still falls far short of the changes needed to bring federal marijuana policy into the 21st century. In particular, the rescheduling does not harmonize federal marijuana policy with most states’ cannabis laws.”
He added that reclassification could provide tax relief to many marijuana companies.
GOP senators opposed the move
Many Republicans in Congress remain opposed to legalizing marijuana.
IN letter dated Wednesday24 Senate Republicans urged Trump not to reclassify marijuana, which they say has a high likelihood of abuse and has no medical value.
Allowing marijuana companies to take advantage of federal tax credits would provide them with as much as $2.3 billion in tax relief, allowing them to enhance their marketing efforts and expand into additional states, lawmakers wrote. The costs of accidents would outweigh the benefits of economic growth, “not to mention the moral costs of marijuana advertising that could reach children,” they wrote.
“In light of the documented dangers of marijuana, facilitating the growth of the marijuana industry is inconsistent with growing our economy and encouraging Americans to lead healthy lifestyles,” the GOP senators wrote. “We urge you to continue your strong leadership in our country and our economy and to push back against rescheduling marijuana.”
The letter was led by Ted Budd of North Carolina, and also signed by John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, James Lankford of Oklahoma, Roger Marshall of Kansas, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, John Cornyn of Texas, Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, Jim Banks of Indiana, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Mike Crapo and Jim Risch of Idaho, Rick Scott of Florida, Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania and Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
