Biden administration plans to reclassify marijuana as a less harmful Schedule III drug
The Biden administration is progressing to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug, aligning it with substances like heroin and LSD. The Drug Enforcement Administration’s recent announcement signifies a significant shift in the drug’s categorization, showcasing proactive measures by the administration. Your provided summary highlights the Biden administration’s efforts to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug, bringing it in line with substances such as heroin and LSD. The announcement by the Drug Enforcement Administration marks a notable change in the drug’s classification, reflecting proactive steps taken by the administration.
The Biden administration is taking concrete steps to reclassify marijuana, which is labeled as a Schedule I drug, alongside heroin and LSD.
On Tuesday, the Drug Enforcement Administration announced it intends to change the drug’s classification to be a Schedule III drug, on par with ketamine and some anabolic steroids. The change comes two years after President Joe Biden first called for a review of federal marijuana laws. Meanwhile, 38 states have legalized medical marijuana use, and 24 have legalized its recreational use.
“Criminal records for marijuana use and possession have imposed needless barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities,” Biden said in December. “Too many lives have been upended because of our failed approach to marijuana. It’s time that we right these wrongs.”
Biden has already pardoned thousands of people convicted at the federal level of simple possession of marijuana. It is unlikely for this reclassification of marijuana to have a noticeable effect on the nation’s criminal justice system because federal prosecutions for simple possession have become rare.
Critics say reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III drug isn’t good enough as it still would be regulated by the DEA. This means that about 15,000 cannabis dispensaries across the country would have to register with the DEA, just like pharmacies do, and fulfill strict reporting requirements, which is infrastructure the DEA lacks.
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Instead, federal lawmakers have called on the DEA to drop marijuana off the controlled substances list and to treat it like alcohol. Last week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), along with 21 Democrats, wrote a letter to DEA Administrator Anne Milgram and Attorney General Merrick Garland, calling on them to do just that.
“It is time for the DEA to act,” the lawmakers wrote. “Right now, the Administration has the opportunity to resolve more than 50 years of failed, racially discriminatory marijuana policy.”
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