Steep Hill
Member
Written by: Diana Essex
In an April 2021 press conference, White House Press Secretary, Jen Psaki said, “Biden supports leaving decisions regarding legalization for recreational use up to the states; rescheduling Cannabis as a Schedule II Drug so researchers can study its positive and negative impacts; and, at the federal level he supports decriminalizing marijuana use and automatically expunging any prior criminal records” (Lozano, 2022). So, what Schedule is Cannabis classified as currently? Cannabis is presently a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act. A Schedule I Drug is defined as a “High potential for abuse, not currently accepted for medical treatment use in the United States and lacks accepted safety use under medical supervision.” Currently, there is no federal unity regarding Cannabis, and discretion is left up to the individual state. “While Cannabis is not yet legal in every state, according to a recent Gallop poll, 68% of Americans believe it should be legalized” (Goldsmith, 2022).
The Cannabis industry is growing rapidly; currently, twenty-one states have fully legalized Cannabis, eighteen have legalized it medically, and the remaining eleven have either legalized low THC products or CBD. Nebraska is the only state where THC remains illegal. However, Joe Biden’s presidency has brought optimism regarding the possibility of unifying federal regulations of the Cannabis industry. “Political dialogue from the Nation’s Capital on Cannabis has advanced tremendously. This further legitimizes the cannabis industry, even if there has been no formal policy reform enacted to date at the federal level” (Hoban, 2022).
So, what progress has been made? While there is still no federal unity, The Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act showed promise and passed the House of Representatives five times. This act would “Allow banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions to offer banking services to legally-operating cannabis businesses without fear of punishment by federal regulators” (Rosen, 2021). The bill stalled in the Senate and did not pass for various reasons. If there is a chance for it to pass this year, it must happen before the midterm elections in November (Hoban, 2022). It has been incredibly difficult for any bill to pass in the Senate due to the differing opinions from both parties. Other bills that did not pass the Senate included: The Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement Act, The Cannabis Administration, and Opportunity Act, and Nancy Mace’s Republican cannabis reform bill.
The fact that the conversation is allowing for these bills to be written is very encouraging, and there is hope for Biden’s goal of rescheduling Cannabis as a Schedule II drug defined as a “Substance or chemical defined as drugs with high potential for abuse, with use potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence. These drugs are considered dangerous” (DEA, n.d.). You may be thinking, now wait, this doesn’t sound like much of an improvement from a Schedule I. While it is still deemed to have a high potential for abuse, the federal government will allow Cannabis to be “Available for prescription with the highest level of restriction” (Hudak & Wallack, 2016). This means scientists will have better access to be able to research the medical impacts and benefits of Cannabis. There would be no change to how state-legal businesses would run, and there would be no additional penalties (Hudak & Wallack 2016).
It seems that Cannabis federal reform is on the right track and headed in the right direction. So what direction is that exactly, almost three months into the new year? The month of April shows some promise as of February 4, 2022, according to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. He has now “Publicly declared that he and his team are prioritizing getting federal marijuana reform on the Senate floor within the coming months, with April 2022 as a target” (Hosner, 2022). This must go well because even though the goal is not legalization on a federal level, it is for federal decriminalization (Hosner 2022). This would turn a new leaf for the Cannabis industry and make it that much easier for future legislation and bipartisan support.
Sources:
Lozano, A. ‘Nothing Has Changed’: Frustration Builds as Cannabis Reform Stalls. NBC News. (January 15, 2022). Retrieved February 18, 2022, from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/nothing-changed-frustration-builds-cannabis-reform-stalls-rcna11130.
Drug Scheduling. The United States Drug Enforcement Administration [DEA]. (n.d.). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.dea.gov/drug-information/drug-scheduling#:~:text=Schedule II drugs, substances, or,drugs are also considered dangerous.
Marijuana/Cannabis. The Department of Justice/Drug Enforcement Administration [DEA]. (April 2020). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2020-06/Marijuana-Cannabis-2020_0.pdf.
Hoban, R. 2021: A Year in Review for the Cannabis Industry. Forbes. (February 1, 2022). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthoban/2022/02/01/2021-a-year-in-review-for-the-cannabis-industry/?sh=55ac1ea920ae.
Goldsmith, M. Everything You Wanted to Know About Cannabis. Forbes. (February 17, 2022). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/margiegoldsmith/2022/02/17/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-cannabis/?sh=b7e7f25a912a.
Garber-Paul, E. and Bort, R. The United States of Weed. Rolling Stone. (April 22, 2021). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/cannabis-legalization-states-map-831885/.
Rosen Leads Bipartisan Effort to Ensure Safe Banking Act Included in NDAA. Jacky Rosen U.S. Senator for Nevada. (November 23, 2021). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.rosen.senate.gov/rosen-leads-bipartisan-effort-ensure-safe-banking-act-included-ndaa#:~:text=“The Secure and Fair Enforcement,of punishment by federal regulators.
Hudak, J. and Wallack, G. Clearing Up Misconceptions About Marijuana Rescheduling: What it Means for Existing State Systems. Brookings. (May 27, 2016). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2016/05/27/clearing-up-misconceptions-about-marijuana-rescheduling-what-it-means-for-existing-state-systems/#:~:text=Movement of marijuana from Schedule,or useless as previously believed.
In an April 2021 press conference, White House Press Secretary, Jen Psaki said, “Biden supports leaving decisions regarding legalization for recreational use up to the states; rescheduling Cannabis as a Schedule II Drug so researchers can study its positive and negative impacts; and, at the federal level he supports decriminalizing marijuana use and automatically expunging any prior criminal records” (Lozano, 2022). So, what Schedule is Cannabis classified as currently? Cannabis is presently a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act. A Schedule I Drug is defined as a “High potential for abuse, not currently accepted for medical treatment use in the United States and lacks accepted safety use under medical supervision.” Currently, there is no federal unity regarding Cannabis, and discretion is left up to the individual state. “While Cannabis is not yet legal in every state, according to a recent Gallop poll, 68% of Americans believe it should be legalized” (Goldsmith, 2022).
The Cannabis industry is growing rapidly; currently, twenty-one states have fully legalized Cannabis, eighteen have legalized it medically, and the remaining eleven have either legalized low THC products or CBD. Nebraska is the only state where THC remains illegal. However, Joe Biden’s presidency has brought optimism regarding the possibility of unifying federal regulations of the Cannabis industry. “Political dialogue from the Nation’s Capital on Cannabis has advanced tremendously. This further legitimizes the cannabis industry, even if there has been no formal policy reform enacted to date at the federal level” (Hoban, 2022).
So, what progress has been made? While there is still no federal unity, The Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act showed promise and passed the House of Representatives five times. This act would “Allow banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions to offer banking services to legally-operating cannabis businesses without fear of punishment by federal regulators” (Rosen, 2021). The bill stalled in the Senate and did not pass for various reasons. If there is a chance for it to pass this year, it must happen before the midterm elections in November (Hoban, 2022). It has been incredibly difficult for any bill to pass in the Senate due to the differing opinions from both parties. Other bills that did not pass the Senate included: The Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement Act, The Cannabis Administration, and Opportunity Act, and Nancy Mace’s Republican cannabis reform bill.
The fact that the conversation is allowing for these bills to be written is very encouraging, and there is hope for Biden’s goal of rescheduling Cannabis as a Schedule II drug defined as a “Substance or chemical defined as drugs with high potential for abuse, with use potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence. These drugs are considered dangerous” (DEA, n.d.). You may be thinking, now wait, this doesn’t sound like much of an improvement from a Schedule I. While it is still deemed to have a high potential for abuse, the federal government will allow Cannabis to be “Available for prescription with the highest level of restriction” (Hudak & Wallack, 2016). This means scientists will have better access to be able to research the medical impacts and benefits of Cannabis. There would be no change to how state-legal businesses would run, and there would be no additional penalties (Hudak & Wallack 2016).
It seems that Cannabis federal reform is on the right track and headed in the right direction. So what direction is that exactly, almost three months into the new year? The month of April shows some promise as of February 4, 2022, according to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. He has now “Publicly declared that he and his team are prioritizing getting federal marijuana reform on the Senate floor within the coming months, with April 2022 as a target” (Hosner, 2022). This must go well because even though the goal is not legalization on a federal level, it is for federal decriminalization (Hosner 2022). This would turn a new leaf for the Cannabis industry and make it that much easier for future legislation and bipartisan support.
Sources:
Lozano, A. ‘Nothing Has Changed’: Frustration Builds as Cannabis Reform Stalls. NBC News. (January 15, 2022). Retrieved February 18, 2022, from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/nothing-changed-frustration-builds-cannabis-reform-stalls-rcna11130.
Drug Scheduling. The United States Drug Enforcement Administration [DEA]. (n.d.). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.dea.gov/drug-information/drug-scheduling#:~:text=Schedule II drugs, substances, or,drugs are also considered dangerous.
Marijuana/Cannabis. The Department of Justice/Drug Enforcement Administration [DEA]. (April 2020). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2020-06/Marijuana-Cannabis-2020_0.pdf.
Hoban, R. 2021: A Year in Review for the Cannabis Industry. Forbes. (February 1, 2022). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthoban/2022/02/01/2021-a-year-in-review-for-the-cannabis-industry/?sh=55ac1ea920ae.
Goldsmith, M. Everything You Wanted to Know About Cannabis. Forbes. (February 17, 2022). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/margiegoldsmith/2022/02/17/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-cannabis/?sh=b7e7f25a912a.
Garber-Paul, E. and Bort, R. The United States of Weed. Rolling Stone. (April 22, 2021). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/cannabis-legalization-states-map-831885/.
Rosen Leads Bipartisan Effort to Ensure Safe Banking Act Included in NDAA. Jacky Rosen U.S. Senator for Nevada. (November 23, 2021). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.rosen.senate.gov/rosen-leads-bipartisan-effort-ensure-safe-banking-act-included-ndaa#:~:text=“The Secure and Fair Enforcement,of punishment by federal regulators.
Hudak, J. and Wallack, G. Clearing Up Misconceptions About Marijuana Rescheduling: What it Means for Existing State Systems. Brookings. (May 27, 2016). Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2016/05/27/clearing-up-misconceptions-about-marijuana-rescheduling-what-it-means-for-existing-state-systems/#:~:text=Movement of marijuana from Schedule,or useless as previously believed.