Law The Cannabis Chronicles - Misc Cannabis News

[Baron23]

FDA Head Says There’s ‘No Reason For DEA To Delay’ Rescheduling Marijuana

The head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says there’s “no reason” for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to “delay” making a marijuana scheduling decision.


FDA Commissioner Robert Califf also said that, “as a child of the sixties,” it would “be nice if in my lifetime we came up with a regulatory scheme” for cannabis.


At a hearing before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee on Thursday, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) pressed Califf on the timeline for the scheduling review after his agency under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recommended that DEA move cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

CBD Can Help Treat Pain, Cancer, Schizophrenia, COVID And Other Conditions


The “timing of a regulatory decision is something that would be up to the DEA, not up to me,” Califf said. “There’s no reason for DEA to delay. They have to take into account all the regulations that are in play.”


Asked whether he expects FDA would assume additional regulatory responsibilities if cannabis is rescheduled, the commissioner said that’s a “very complicated topic,” especially given that this “falls in this area where state regulation has been dominant.”



“This is an area where I believe we would be better off if we had guidance from Congress about how to proceed,” Califf said. “Medical marijuana is one thing where there’s a medical purpose and it’s proven through traditional medical pathways, but when it’s used for recreational purposes, there is no medical benefit in that case, it doesn’t fall under our typical regulation.”


Mace, who also recently discussed scheduling issues and the need for the GOP-controlled House to advance cannabis reform legislation, also raised concerns about the prevalence of hemp-derived intoxicating cannabinoids and the lack of regulations around those products.



“Without revealing too much about my age, I’m a child of the sixties so it’d be nice if, in my lifetime, we came up with a regulatory scheme where—whatever your belief is about use of the product—where the safety issues that you refer to are written into law so that we have a scheme whereby we can regulate it.”


Prohibitionist Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX) also addressed the cannabis scheduling issue, stating he believes that “FDA did not base its assessment in scientific facts or realities of how marijuana has been abused and used in our country today.”



FDA’s recommendation to reschedule cannabis “completely ignores the realities of a drug that is causing enormous consequences of children and adults in our country, high schools, middle schools and communities.”


He then repeated talking points that he and other GOP lawmakers forwarded to DEA Administrator Anne Milgram urging the agency to keep marijuana in Schedule I of the CSA, including criticism of the revised review process FDA used that involved a new a two-pronged analysis instead of a five-factor review that has been used in the past. Opponents of cannabis reform argue this policy shift is evidence of FDA intentionally exercising more discretion to justify its rescheduling recommendation for political, rather than scientific, reasons.

 

[Baron23]

Cannabis Rescheduling Review ‘Now With The DOJ’ ​

White House Suggests Department of Justice May Determine Cannabis Rescheduling.​

The White House Press Secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, has suggested that the Department of Justice could now have the final say in whether cannabis is rescheduled.


Asked whether the state is ‘doing anything to try to improve safety’ or considering the legalization of cannabis federally moving forward during a press conference yesterday, Ms Jean Pierre said that the scheduling review is ‘now with the DOJ’.


“So as you all know, the President asked the Secretary of HHS (Department of Health and Human Services) and the Attorney General to initiate the administrative process to review how marijuana is scheduled.


“HHS has concluded their independent review guided by the evidence, the scheduling review is now with DOJ and any input should certainly be directed to them at a time and in a manner they say is appropriate…At this point, now that HHS has completed their review, it’s in the Department of Justice, and they can speak to where marijuana rescheduling is at this point.”


The statement, first reported by Marijuana Moment, comes amid growing pressure and signs of commitment from the Biden administration to implement reform at the federal level.


Following the HHS recommendation that cannabis should be moved from a Schedule I substance to a Schedule III substance, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) is continuing its review into the matter, and the industry is eagerly awaiting its decision.


According to sources speaking to Green Market Report however, the timing of this decision remains unclear, and the process could yet take years to come to fruition. With a November presidential election looming, this leaves the future of the initiative uncertain.


David Culver, Senior Vice President of public affairs at the US Cannabis Council, told the publication: “The president’s campaign politics dictate, in my mind, that we’re going to see a decision before the election, for sure, simply because they’ve already started to focus on the work they’ve done on cannabis reform, and the rescheduling piece of it is going to be the centrepiece.”

 

[Baron23]

I have to throw the BS flag on this. In over 3 years Biden hasn't really done squat to legalize MJ. And remember, the DOJ, DEA, and FDA all work for him.

But now he seems to be in a tough reelection cycle he panders to MJ advocates with what....a fucking tweet. Fuck him. He's been a drug cold warrior his entire career and I don't believe he's changed his stripes except to make noise as part of his reelection campaign.

P.S. - see today's post in New Mexico to see what the Feds...under Biden...are actually doing.

Joe Biden And Kamala Harris Tweet About Marijuana At Exactly 4:20 On 4/20​

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris both touted their support for marijuana law reform to mark the cannabis holiday 4/20 at exactly 4:20 p.m. on Saturday.

The comments are latest sign the administration plans to continue to focus on the popular issue ahead of the November election.

“Sending people to prison just for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit,” the president said in a post on X. “It’s time that we right these wrongs.”

“Nobody should have to go to jail for smoking weed,” the vice president said in her own tweet at the same time. “We must continue to change our nation’s approach to marijuana while reforming the justice system so it finally lives up to its name.”

Later on Saturday, Biden tweeted that he’s “urging all governors to pardon prior state offenses of simple possession of marijuana.”

“No one should be in a federal prison solely due to the possession of marijuana, and no one should be in a local jail or state prison for that reason, either,” he said.

A day before, on Friday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden has been “very, very clear” about his support for decriminalizing marijuana. She added that the administration is waiting for the Justice Department to complete its review into cannabis scheduling and doesn’t have any additional updates on advancing reform or further expanding pardons.

She was responding to a question at a press briefing about advocates’ criticism that Biden has not yet fulfilled his campaign pledge to federally decriminalize marijuana, even though he has taken meaningful steps by directing the scheduling review and granting hundreds of cannabis pardons.

“Look, on decriminalization the president has been very, very clear he doesn’t believe that anyone should be in jail or be prosecuted just for using or possessing marijuana,” she said. “He continues to say that. He believes that.”

That was the second time the White House has been asked about marijuana policy in the last week, as discussions around reform have been amplified around the cannabis holiday 4/20. As was the case earlier this week, Jean-Pierre reiterated that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has recommended moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) based on a review that was “guided by evidence [and] by science,” which is “what we believe here in this administration.”

“The scheduling review is now with the Department of Justice. Certainly, the process is still going—the review is still going—so DOJ has this,” she said. “But the president has been really, really clear about how he feels about people being prosecuted just for using or possessing marijuana. That has not changed.”


Asked whether there are any plans to further expand on the marijuana pardons the president has issued, the press secretary said “as it relates to pardons, I don’t have anything to preview at this time.”


“But look, there’s a review that Department of Justice is currently undergoing, so we’ve got to let them do their review,” she said. “The president has been pretty clear on where he stands on this, and so I would refer to Department of Justice on on rescheduling and their review.”


While the administration has repeatedly promoted Biden’s marijuana scheduling directive and pardons, especially in recent months as the presidential election approaches, it’s notable that the press secretary used the word “decriminalization” to discuss his position on the issue. Biden campaigned on decriminalization, but that specific language hasn’t been employed of late.


That might have to do with the reality that even moving marijuana to Schedule III as HHS has recommended would not, in fact, decriminalize it—nor do the president’s clemency actions to date constitute a formal decriminalization policy.


That’s why a group of 20 justice and drug reform advocacy organizations called on Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to publicly support the removal of marijuana from the CSA, rather than merely a move to Schedule III, in a letter to the White House on Tuesday, as a reporter referenced in his questions to Jean-Pierre on Friday.


While DEA has not given a specific sense of timing for when it will complete and submit its cannabis review, there are heightened expectations that it will come before the November election—both because of past precedent in scheduling matters and because the Biden administration has become increasingly vocal about its role in facilitating the review.


Biden has continued to tout the marijuana scheduling directive and cannabis pardons he’s issued, including in a presidential proclamation declaring April “Second Chance Month.”


The president also discussed the marijuana actions in a historic context last month, during his State of the Union address.


Harris, meanwhile, separately urged DEA to finish its review and reschedule marijuana “as quickly as possible” while meeting pardon recipients for a roundtable event at the White House last month. Behind closed doors, she also said “we need to legalize marijuana.”


The head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under HHS told congressional lawmakers last week that there’s “no reason” for DEA to “delay” making a marijuana scheduling decision.


A DEA official recently said it sometimes takes up to six months for DEA to complete its analysis of health officials’ scheduling recommendations—which is just about how long it has now been since the agency began its current cannabis assessment.


Meanwhile, last month, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra defended his agency’s rescheduling recommendation during a Senate committee hearing and also told cannabis lobbyist Don Murphy that he should pay DEA a visit and “knock on their door” for answers about the timing of their decision.


Certain DEA officials are reportedly resisting the Biden administration’s rescheduling push, disputing the HHS findings on marijuana’s safety profile and medical potential, according to unnamed sources who spoke with The Wall Street Journal.


Meanwhile, a Democratic congressman said on Friday that this Saturday will be the “last 4/20 celebration that cannabis will be on Schedule I,” adding that he’s “quite confident” the GOP House will take up a bipartisan cannabis banking bill if lawmakers “break this loose in the Senate.”

 

[Baron23]

I'm not a one issue voter, but I believe the GOP is absolutely wrong in their position on MJ legalization and this position fails to reflect the desires of the majority of voters as demonstrated in many, many polls.

​

Congressional Progressive Caucus Says Democrats Can Legalize Marijuana If They Win House And Senate Majorities In November Election​

The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) has unveiled a new legislative agenda that includes marijuana legalization and expungements among a list of priorities that members say Democrats “can pass with congressional majorities” if they keep the Senate and retake the House in the November elections.

The Progressive Proposition Agenda that was endorsed by the caucus covers a wide range of domestic policy issues that CPC’s chair, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), says are designed to “motivate people with a vision of progressive governance under Democratic majorities in the House and Senate and a Democratic White House.”
Under a criminal justice section, the caucus is reiterating its call for federal cannabis legalization. It comes in stark contrast to a recent Republican Policy Committee memo urging GOP members to oppose even incremental reform proposals such as a bipartisan marijuana banking bill.

The progressive agenda specifically encourages legislative and administrative action to “reduce criminalization and incarceration through sentencing reform, legalizing cannabis, expunging records, providing restorative justice, and an accelerated and reformed clemency process for people with marijuana-related convictions.”

“Progressives are proud to have been part of the most significant Democratic legislative accomplishments of this century,” Jayapal said in a press release on Thursday. “We have made real progress for everyday Americans—but there’s much more work to be done.”


“With the Progressive Proposition Agenda, Democrats in Congress can meet the urgent needs people are facing, rewrite the rules to ensure majorities of this country are no longer barred from the American promise of equality, justice, and economic opportunity, and motivate people with a vision of progressive governance under Democratic majorities in the House and Senate and a Democratic White House,” she said.

The cannabis reform proposals are among the items CPC says “Democrats can pass with congressional majorities that will deliver immediate, tangible results for everyday Americans as well as rebuild systems that have held communities back for too long.”

In contrast, the Republican Policy Committee set out a demonstrably different agenda in a recent memo that formally opposes marijuana banking legislation and a separate bill to remove past cannabis use as a disqualifying factor for federal employment and security clearances, while broadly criticizing the substance as a “gateway drug” that causes “violence, depression and suicide.”

Meanwhile, a separate Executive Action Agenda that CPC put forward last year urged President Joe Biden to direct federal agencies to “expedite” the ongoing marijuana scheduling review and reinstate guidance protecting state cannabis programs from federal interference.

That preceded the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) disclosing their recommendation to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is now completing its own review before making a final decision.
When CPC rolled out its platform in 2020, it called for marijuana to be legalized within the first six months of 2021 and the expungement of prior records.

 

[Baron23]

This is an excerpt from a longer article. Full article, much of which has to do Ventura's personal MJ activities and history, can be read by following the link. But I thought this part deserved posting...mostly because I agree with him! haha Drug enforcement is the DEA's rice bowl and that trumps any and all other considerations for a fed bureaucracy, IMO. Protect the rice bowl...protect the funding.

DEA Shouldn’t Be In Charge Of Marijuana Rescheduling Decision, Jesse Ventura Says

Former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura isn’t planning to run for elected office again in the foreseeable future, choosing instead to commit his “total focus” to his newly launched cannabis brand. But if he was running, he tells Marijuana Moment that he’d make cannabis legalization a top campaign...

www.marijuanamoment.net

"MM: Biden has issued marijuana pardons and initiated the cannabis scheduling review that’s now being carried out by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Can I get your thoughts about that process?​

​

JV: I guess the first thing that I did was I had to scratch my head and go, “Why is the DEA, the enforcement people, allowed to make the decisions on whether it should be legal or not?”​

​

​

I mean, excuse me, they have the biggest conflict of interest of anybody on the planet, right? Because if they keep it illegal, that means they stay in business and they get way more money allocated to them by the federal government to continue to go out and bust people for cannabis. How come they’re the deciding agency?​

​

​

Excuse my French, but that’s bullshit. You know, that’s like putting the police in charge of lawmaking. You elect people to make laws. The police merely enforce the law. Why are you allowing the enforcer of the law to make the law?"​

 

[Baron23]

Well, there goes Sabet and the rest of the anti-drug warriors principal scare tactic.

​

‘No Evidence’ That Marijuana Legalization For Adults Increases Youth Cannabis Use, New Research Published By American Medical Association Finds​

Authors of a new research letter published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) on Wednesday said there’s no evidence that states’ adoption of laws to legalize and regulate marijuana for adults have led to an increase in youth use of cannabis.


To arrive at the results, researchers at Montana State University and San Diego State University took responses from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), which asks high-school students about various health-related activities, the report explains. All told, the four-author team analyzed results from 207,781 respondents.


Findings showed that states’ adoption of recreational marijuana laws (RMLs) had no association with the prevalence of youth cannabis consumption.

Marijuana Consumers Have "Significantly Decreased Odds" Of Cognitive Decline

“In this repeated cross-sectional study, there was no evidence that RMLs were associated with encouraging youth marijuana use,” the two-page paper published in JAMA Psychiatry says. “After legalization, there was no evidence of an increase in marijuana use.”

Legalization “adoption was not associated with current marijuana use or frequent marijuana use.”

Nor did the opening of marijuana retail stores seem to impact youth use. “Estimates based on the state YRBS and estimates of the association between the first dispensary opening and marijuana use were qualitatively similar,” the team wrote.


Authors wrote that, in their study, “more policy variation was captured than in any prior study on RMLs and youth marijuana use.” Pre- and post-legalization data were available for 12 states, and nine contributed data from before and after retail sales began. Data also included 36 states without adult-use cannabis laws.



The data come on the heels of another JAMA-published study earlier this month that found that neither legalization nor the opening of retail stores led to increases in youth cannabis use.


That study, published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, concluded that the reforms were actually associated with more young people reporting not using marijuana, along with increases in those who say they don’t use alcohol or vape products either.


Passage of recreational cannabis laws (RCL) “was not associated with adolescents’ likelihood or frequency of cannabis use,” found the analysis, by researchers at Boston College and the University of Maryland at College Park. Nor was the opening of retail stores associated with increases in youth use.


Over time, that study suggested, adult-use marijuana laws in fact led to lower odds of any cannabis use. “Each additional year of RCL,” it says, “was associated with 8% higher odds of zero cannabis use (lower likelihood of any use), with non-significant total estimates.”



“Results,” that study concluded, “suggest that legalization and greater control over cannabis markets have not facilitated adolescents’ entry into substance use.”


The subject of youth use has been a contentious topic as more states consider legalizing marijuana, with opponents and supporters of the reform often disagreeing on how to interpret results of various studies, especially in light of the sometimes mixed results in the latest JAMA paper and others.


Recently released data from a Washington State survey of adolescent and teenage students found overall declines in both lifetime and past-30-day marijuana use since legalizations, with striking drops in recent years that held steady through 2023. The results also indicate that perceived ease of access to cannabis among underage students has generally fallen since the state enacted legalization for adults in 2012.

 

[Baron23]

Who needs the circus when we have a 24x7x365 day clown show called out Federal government. As should be obvious by now, I'm a firm supporter of MJ legalization and personally think moving it to Sched I will cause a cascade of issues (such as requiring a Dr prescription and a pharmacy to be involved). With all that said, these politicians are just flapping their jaws. Exactly when did ANY of them introduce legislation to modify the Controlled Substance Act. Oh yeah, that's right....its Congress' job to set the law, no a bureaucracy like the DEA. Failure by Congress to even try to do anything about this is malfeasance IMO.

Congressional Lawmakers Demand DEA ‘Promptly’ Reschedule Marijuana, Regardless Of ‘Internal Disagreement’ At The Agency​

A coalition of 21 congressional lawmakers is telling the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to “promptly remove marijuana from Schedule I,” while recognizing that the agency may be “navigating internal disagreement” on the issue.

In a letter led by Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and John Fetterman (D-PA), as well as Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Barbara Lee (D-CA), members told DEA Administrator Anne Milgram and Attorney General Merrick Garland that it’s been eight months since the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recommended that DEA move cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA)—and it’s “time for [DEA] to act.”

They added that the current Schedule I status of marijuana “produces a cascade of severe penalties for marijuana users and businesses, including for criminal records, immigration statuses, employment, taxation, health care, public housing, social services, and more.”
Teen Marijuana Use Has Declined In Washington Since Legalization

Citing prior letters, the lawmakers—including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY)—reiterated that while a Schedule III reclassification would be a “meaningful improvement, the only way to remedy the most concerning consequences of marijuana prohibition is to deschedule marijuana altogether.”


“The DEA now has the power to determine whether it will continue the failed approach of keeping marijuana in Schedule I,” the letter says.



“Although some at the DEA have indicated that the agency’s review of an HHS scheduling recommendation often takes up to six months, almost eight months have now passed since the DEA received HHS’s recommendation,” they said. “While we understand that the DEA may be navigating internal disagreement on this matter, it is critical that the agency swiftly correct marijuana’s misguided placement in Schedule I.”


That point references reporting in The Wall Street Journal that said DEA officials are “at odds” with the Biden administration over the scheduling review.



“The longer marijuana remains scheduled in the CSA, the longer our communities face senselessly severe penalties and the longer the marijuana laws of the majority of U.S. states remain in conflict with federal law,” the letter continues. “Right now, the Administration has the opportunity to resolve more than 50 years of failed, racially discriminatory marijuana policy.”


“We trust that the DEA is working as quickly as possible toward a decision on how marijuana is scheduled, as Vice President Kamala Harris recently reassured stakeholders. We are also hopeful that the DEA will not make the unprecedented choice to disagree with HHS’s medical finding that a drug does not belong in Schedule I.”


The letter concludes by applauding President Joe Biden for promoting marijuana reform during his State of the Union address and saying Second Chance Month represents a “prime opportunity to finally begin remedying the harms of marijuana’s scheduling by removing marijuana from Schedule I.”



“We look forward to your prompt action and appreciate your attention to this important matter,” they said.


The letter, which was first reported by HuffPost, also cites a response several senators received from DEA earlier this month explaining that the agency is carrying out its duties in the cannabis review and “must follow the procedures set forth in the [CSA], including an opportunity for a public comment period and a hearing.”


That’s notable, as it appears to be the first time DEA has explicitly acknowledged the likelihood of a public feedback period including a public hearing after it announces the conclusion of its review.



Other signatories on the letter include Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR), Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Jeff Merkeley (D-OR), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Reps. Robert Garcia (D-CA), Dina Titus (D-NV) and more.


Meanwhile, the head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says there’s “no reason” for DEA to “delay” making a marijuana scheduling decision.


Last month, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra defended his agency’s rescheduling recommendation during a Senate committee hearing and also told cannabis lobbyist Don Murphy that he should pay DEA a visit and “knock on their door” for answers about the timing of their decision.

 

[Baron23]

"While the Biden campaign email criticized the prior administration’s action, however, it omitted the fact that any cannabis guidance has yet to be reissued under the current administration—despite Attorney General Merrick Garland saying in June 2022 that DOJ would be addressing the issue “in the days ahead.”​

Can't make this shit up....wow, I really hate politicians

Biden Campaign Says Trump ‘Took Marijuana Reform Backwards’ By Rescinding Enforcement Memo, Despite Current Admin Failing To Reinstate It​

The Biden reelection campaign says the Trump administration “took marijuana reform backwards” by rescinding Justice Department guidance that promoted discretion in federal cannabis prosecutions.

In an email distributed on Thursday, the Biden-Harris campaign touted the vice president’s White House roundtable with recent pardon recipients who received clemency for drug-related convictions and contrasted various criminal justice reform initiatives with the record of former President Donald Trump, who is the presumptive Republican nominee in this year’s presidential election.

Vice President Kamala Harris’s event—where she again touted President Joe Biden’s mass cannabis pardons—comes in “stark contrast with the Trump administration’s failures on criminal justice reform,” the Democratic ticket’s campaign email said, listing various policy actions from the former president.

Young Americans Are Five Times More Likely To Smoke Marijuana Than Cigarettes

“Trump and his administration took marijuana reform backwards, withdrawing guidelines to limit prosecutions of marijuana offenses that were legal under state laws,” the email says.

That’s a reference to former Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s move to rescind Obama-era guidance known as the Cole memo that laid out federal cannabis enforcement priorities, generally formalizing a policy of non-intervention for state-legal marijuana activity.

The practical impact of the decision was limited, as states have continued to operate legal marketplaces and approve additional legalization laws largely without federal interference. But the move was symbolically significant, raising concerns about a potential federal crackdown that never ultimately materialized.

While the Biden campaign email criticized the prior administration’s action, however, it omitted the fact that any cannabis guidance has yet to be reissued under the current administration—despite Attorney General Merrick Garland saying in June 2022 that DOJ would be addressing the issue “in the days ahead.”

When Garland was asked about the issue during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing last March, he said that it was “fair to expect” that the updated marijuana policy would be “very close to what was done in the Cole Memorandum.”

Two Democratic congressional lawmakers said in a letter to Garland late last month that it is “unacceptable” that the Justice Department has yet to reissue the federal marijuana enforcement guidance to discourage interference in state cannabis programs, leaving Americans in a “legal limbo” despite promises to update the policy.

In any case, the Biden campaign’s choice to draw the cannabis contrast is notable, representing one of the latest examples of how the president is aiming to leverage the popularity of marijuana reform ahead of the November election.

“On criminal justice, the contrast couldn’t be clearer: while Trump talks about pardoning January 6th rioters and celebrating violence, Vice President Harris and President Biden are giving a second chance to people convicted of nonviolent drug offenses,” Biden-Harris campaign spokesperson James Singer said in Thursday’s email.

Meanwhile, on the cannabis holiday 4/20 last Saturday, both Biden and Harris promoted marijuana policy reform in social media posts at exactly 4:20pm ET.

The president also discussed the cannabis actions in a historic context last month, during his State of the Union address.

Earlier this month, Biden, Harris and a top Justice Department official all marked “Second Chance Month” by separately touting the administration’s mass marijuana pardons—another acknowledgement from the White House that cannabis reform is a focus heading into the November election.

 

[Baron23]

Is Weed a winning issue? Why Biden and Trump pounce legalize pot​

Joe Biden and Donald Trump have a prime political opportunity to pounce on marijuana legalization, especially in four key swing states.​

American voters face a November rematch for president that many did not want, and the winner will be the oldest man ever to hold or retake the White House. So courting young voters makes plenty of sense for President Joe Biden and the man he defeated in 2020, Donald Trump.


And there's an issue that, while polling strongly with all Americans, really appeals to voters under the age of 35 − the legalization of marijuana.


Three of the anticipated seven swing states already have approved full recreational and medical use for marijuana − Arizona, Michigan and Nevada. The other four − Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin − all still have strict limitations. This, despite plenty of polling in those states and nationwide that shows strong support for full legalization.


One problem there, according to Morgan Fox, the political director for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), is that public support has always been "a mile wide and an inch deep."


That's another way of saying that while plenty of people favor legalization, it has never been a political priority for them. "But that's definitely starting to change, especially as we roll into the next presidential election, where we have arguably one of the most informed young electorates that we've ever had," Fox told me.

Polls show strong support for marijuana legalization​

Gallup, in a survey released in November, said public support for legalization hit a record 70% "after holding steady at 68%" for the three previous years. And the younger you are, the more likely you feel that way. The survey found 79% support from people ages 18-34, 71% for respondents ages 35-54, and 64% for those 55 or older.


There was strong bipartisan support as well among Democrats (87%), independents (70%) and Republicans (55%).


Biden and Trump clearly know this, though they have taken different approaches to legalization.


Biden, during his State of The Union address in March, noted that he had called for a federal review of marijuana being classified as a "Schedule 1 drug," which means it has "no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse," according to the Drug Enforcement Administration, which lists heroin and LSD in the same category.


Biden also touted his expungements of thousands of criminal convictions for people charged on federal land, repeating a phrase he has used often − "because no one should be jailed for using or possessing marijuana!"


Biden softened his resistance to legalization during the 2020 campaign, but NORML still wants more from him.


"He has not lived up to his promises on the campaign trail in terms of decriminalizing and de-scheduling," Fox said. "But he has done more than any sitting president ever on this issue."


Trump, during his one term as president, issued pardons for people convicted for distributing marijuana and, on his last day in office, commuted the sentences for a dozen people convicted of similar crimes.


But in an interview with Newsmax last year, Trump called marijuana "pretty popular" while warning it does "significant damage." This month, in a speech at the National Rifle Association's Leadership Forum, he shifted blame for gun violence to "genetically engineered cannabis and other narcotics are causing psychotic breaks."


Fox told me Trump "did a lot of pretty decent things" on criminal justice reform and marijuana while in office.


"But when asked on the campaign trail, the former president really did not have a solid or cogent position on the issue," he said.

Marijuana laws vary by state​

The swing states that have not embraced legalization are governed by a patchwork of marijuana laws that don't come anywhere close to meeting what the voters want.


In Georgia, the state keeps a registry of people who can use "low THC oil" for medical uses. A poll last year by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the University of Georgia found that 53% of the registered voters in that state said marijuana should be fully legal for adults.


"We don't consider Georgia to have an effective medical cannabis program," Fox said.


In North Carolina, medical marijuana became available for purchase this month on the tribal lands of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. But Fox warned: "The second you step off tribal land you are subject to arrest."


North Carolina's legislature considered but did not pass a medical marijuana bill last year. A Meredith College poll in February found that 78% of registered voters in that state support medical marijuana.


Pennsylvania approved medical marijuana in 2016, but Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat elected in 2020 and widely expected to run for president in 2028, pitched full legalization in his February budget address as a way to raise $250 million in state revenue per year.


A Franklin & Marshall College Poll of registered Pennsylvania voters this month found that 62% support full legalization.


And in Wisconsin, Gov. Tony Evers supports full legalization or just medical marijuana. But the state legislature, which looked at only medical uses, in February punted the issue until next year.


A recent Marquette Law School Poll of registered Wisconsin voters found that 86% support medical marijuana while 63% support full legalization.


There is a prime political opportunity for Biden and Trump to pounce on the issue, especially in these four states.


Decriminalization doesn't cut it with a majority of voters, who want marijuana legalized 54 years after it was added to the list of Schedule 1 drugs by the the Controlled Substances Act of 1970.


In a hyperpartisan election cycle with candidates and voters at odds over so many issues, why not grab hold of and run with an issue so many people agree on?

 

[Marlon Rando]

US drug control agency will move to reclassify marijuana in a historic shift, AP sources say

In a historic shift, the U.S. moves to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, AP sources say.

apnews.com

 

[Baron23]

Rescheduling Cannabis Shifts The Paradigm By Finally Recognizing Its Medical Value (Op-Ed)
on May 1, 2024 By Marijuana Moment


“Schedule III will not lift all barriers to research, but it may contribute to the advancement of urgently needed research, which should be prioritized and vigorously pursued.”
By Shawn Hauser, Vicente LLP
The Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) decision to reschedule cannabis represents a historic and critically important shift in U.S. drug policy. By moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the federal Controlled Substances Act, the U.S. government is finally (and officially) recognizing the efficacy and safety of cannabis for medical use.
Marijuana Consumers Have "Significantly Decreased Odds" Of Cognitive Decline

There are valid and important reasons why Schedule III is not the most appropriate classification for cannabis. It does not achieve imminently needed criminal justice reforms; state-regulated cannabis activities remain federally illegal; and some barriers to research and effective regulation remain. A strong case can be made that cannabis, like alcohol, should not be included in the drug schedules. There are also reasons to believe that “descheduling” was not in the realm of possibility in this administrative process and that rescheduling will hasten the route to that goal.


Rather than debating what the federal government could have or should have done, let’s take a closer look at what it is doing and why it matters. Specifically, let’s look at its implications for medical patients and the enduring impacts that will come from the federal government officially acknowledging cannabis’s medical value.



Legitimacy in the Medical Community


Despite evidence of medical cannabis use dating back thousands of years, a growing body of promising research and doctors recommending medical cannabis in 38 states where it is legal under state law, cannabis has spent the last 50 years on Schedule I—which is reserved for substances with “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” Recognition of cannabis’s medical benefits has grown considerably in recent years, but it remains less accepted and less understood than many other medications and treatments.



The endocannabinoid system is not typically included in American medical school curriculums, despite being the largest neurotransmitter system in the body, with critical importance to its function. A lot of physicians will not recommend medical cannabis because they fear legal or professional repercussions, including many in states with medical cannabis programs. Even when doctors do recognize cannabis as a potentially valuable treatment, most are not equipped to fully utilize it.


In Schedule III, cannabis is deemed to have an accepted medical use in treatment and relatively low potential for abuse. This legitimization could be transformative for the medical community and its role in advancing medical cannabis, inviting engagement and shifts in public opinion by doctors, universities and medical institutions. Paired with some loosened requirements for research and the potential for additional capital (which are discussed further below), this should result in more studies on product formulations, dosage and modes of administration. It may also reduce stigma and alleviate physicians’ concerns about recommending it or learning about its benefits.



To be clear, Schedule III does not allow cannabis to be dispensed at neighborhood pharmacies and sold through interstate commerce, as these avenues are limited to Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs. To date, FDA has approved only one cannabis-derived drug (Epidiolex), along with three synthetic cannabinoid-based drugs for specific conditions. Cannabis sold in state-legal dispensaries will remain in clear violation of federal law. For over a decade, however, DEA and FDA have not interfered with state cannabis programs, which is a testament to the relative safety of marijuana when it is regulated responsibly.



Opportunities for Research and a New Standard for Medical Use in Treatment


Marijuana’s Schedule I status and unreasonable DEA policies that stemmed from it made it nearly impossible (by design) to conduct the standard of research that proves the medical efficacy and safety of cannabis. For decades, DEA has denied petitions and ignored mountains of compelling evidence, often citing the lack of scientific evidence that it was overtly blocking.


President Biden’s strong directive to expeditiously review the scheduling of cannabis provided the force necessary to spark a review by HHS and DEA that applied more reasonable standards when considering whether cannabis has accepted medical use. Remarkably, they considered state data in determining whether cannabis has accepted medical use.



This evolved standard also holds promise for the development of cannabis-based medicines. Rates of innovation and consumer demand in both pharmaceutical and more raw forms of cannabis indicate a place and need for both. A “regulate cannabis like alcohol model,” preserving the FDA drug pathway while providing a framework for adult-use products (as proposed in the STATES 2.0 Act), would support this.


Existing research indicates cannabis holds tremendous promise for a wide range of medical and therapeutic uses, including pain and opiate use disorders, which have reached epidemic levels in recent years. Yet clinical trials are limited in comparison to other treatments. Schedule III will not lift all barriers to research, but it may contribute to the advancement of urgently needed research, which should be prioritized and vigorously pursued.



Momentum Toward Ending Prohibition


Given marijuana’s relatively low potential for abuse, Schedule III is likely the best outcome that could have resulted from this historic administrative reclassification process. Rather than thinking of it as not going far enough, it should be viewed as a significant shift for medicine and a key stepping stone to the ultimate solution of descheduling, which is required to achieve criminal justice reform, social equity and a regulatory model appropriate for cannabis. The removal of cannabis from the purview of 280E and likelihood to attract investors will free up industry capital that is needed to fund research and further reform efforts to achieve this.



By establishing the legitimacy of cannabis as medicine and more materially engaging the industry and medical community, we can more effectively persuade and influence legislators and leaders across the political spectrum.


Rescheduling to Schedule III is neither the perfect nor final solution. It does, however, finally and officially recognize the medical efficacy of cannabis, which has dramatic and long-term societal impacts for medicine, patients and the industry.


Shawn Hauser is a partner at Vicente LLP, where she co-chairs the firm’s Hemp and Cannabinoids Department and serves as a leading member of the firm’s psychedelics and emerging therapies practice.

 

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Marijuana Rescheduling Would Not Bring State Markets ‘Into Compliance’ With Federal Law, Congressional Researchers Say​

If the federal government reschedules marijuana as proposed by the Justice Department, that would not legalize cannabis or bring state-regulated markets “into compliance” with federal law, congressional researchers said in a new analysis.

However, moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) would allow state-licensed cannabis businesses to take federal tax deductions and remove certain barriers to marijuana research, the Congressional Research Service’s (CRS) “Legal Sidebar” report says.

Days after it was confirmed that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agreed with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that cannabis should be reclassified, CRS published an overview of legal implications on Thursday.

Perhaps most importantly, the non-partisan office reiterated that rescheduling marijuana, “without other legal changes, would not bring the state-legal medical or recreational marijuana industry into compliance with federal controlled substances law.”

“With respect to the manufacture, distribution, and possession of recreational marijuana, if marijuana were moved to Schedule III, such activities would remain illegal under federal law and potentially subject to federal prosecution regardless of their status under state law,” it said.

“Some criminal penalties for CSA violations depend on the schedule in which a substance is classified. If marijuana were moved to Schedule III, applicable penalties for some offenses would be reduced. However, CSA penalties that apply to activities involving marijuana specifically, such as the quantity-based mandatory minimum sentences discussed above, would not change as a result of rescheduling. DEA is not required to set annual production quotas for Schedule III controlled substances.”
However, the potential reclassification would not affect a longstanding congressional appropriations rider preventing the Justice Department from using its funds to interfere in state medical cannabis programs.

The report echoes points CRS made in a separate marijuana analysis published in January.

Unlike Schedule I drugs, substances in Schedule III are defined as having “an accepted medical use and may lawfully be dispensed by prescription,” but only if the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves a specific product, CRS said. FDA has approved certain cannabis-based medications, but botanical marijuana that’s available in state markets is unlikely to meet the agency’s standards for widespread approval.

One of the key legal effects of moving marijuana to Schedule III concerns an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code known as 280E, which blocks individuals from taking federal business deductions for expenses related to commerce involving Schedule I and Schedule II substances.

“Other collateral legal consequences would continue to attach to unauthorized marijuana-related activities,” CRS said.

Such “collateral consequences arising from the federal prohibition of marijuana,” the report says, include implications for bankruptcy proceedings, immigration status and gun ownership.

The report also explains that scheduling changes can be implemented both through the administrative process that led to the new reclassification decision and through acts of Congress.

“If Congress wishes to change the legal status of marijuana, it has broad authority to do so before or after DEA makes any final scheduling decision,” CRS said. “Several proposals from the 118th Congress would remove marijuana from control under the CSA or move the substance to a less restrictive schedule.”

“Rescheduling or descheduling marijuana under the CSA could raise additional legal questions,” it said, noting the potential role of FDA in regulating cannabis products and the possibility of Congress establishing a regulatory framework for marijuana.

To that end, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and colleagues reintroduced legislation this week to federally legalize cannabis and impose certain regulations. The bill’s prospects are dubious in the current divided Congress, however.

Meanwhile, the top Democrat in the U.S. House said on Wednesday that the Biden administration’s move to reschedule marijuana is a “step in the right direction,” but it should be followed up with congressional action such as passing the legalization bill Schumer filed.

“While most recent proposals would relax federal regulation of marijuana, Congress could also seek to impose more stringent controls,” the CRS report says. “One proposal from the 118th Congress would withhold certain federal funds from states in which the purchase or public possession of marijuana for recreational purposes is lawful.”