Trump expected to sign order reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III drug

President Trump is expected to motion an enforcement bid connected Thursday that would reschedule marijuana to a little cause classification, according to 2 sources acquainted with the planning, successful 1 of the astir important changes to cause argumentation successful decades.

One root cautioned that portion the program is for the bid to beryllium signed Thursday, the timing could shift.

The bid is expected to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I cause to a Schedule III drug. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, Schedule I applies to substances with "no presently accepted aesculapian usage and a precocious imaginable for abuse" — the agency's astir stringent classification, which is besides for heroin, LSD and ecstasy successful summation to marijuana.

The DEA uses Schedule III for substances "with a mean to debased imaginable for carnal and intelligence dependence." Other Schedule III drugs see Tylenol with codeine, testosterone, anabolic steroids and ketamine

Moving the cause to a little docket would not alteration the information that it remains amerciable for recreational usage astatine the national level. But it could unfastened the doorway to much probe into marijuana and expanded aesculapian uses. It mightiness besides lower the taxation burden for state-licensed marijuana dispensaries successful the dozens of states that person legalized the drug, since national instrumentality bars businesses that merchantability Schedule I substances from taking immoderate taxation deductions.

Mr. Trump said Monday helium is "considering" moving marijuana to a antithetic docket due to the fact that determination are "tremendous amounts of probe that can't beryllium done unless you reclassify."

"Rescheduling volition assistance accelerate research, trim stigma, pull caller investment, and easiness immoderate of the taxation burdens that person held the manufacture back. The adjacent translation volition hap erstwhile interstate commerce barriers betwixt states are removed," said Vince C. Ning, the co-CEO and co-founder of cannabis wholesale level Nabis. 

CNN archetypal reported that the enforcement bid is planned for Thursday. 

The president said during his campaign past twelvemonth that helium believes marijuana should alternatively beryllium a Schedule III drug.

The Biden-era Department of Health and Human Services besides recommended bumping marijuana down to Schedule III. The Justice Department, the DEA's genitor agency, proposed a rule to reschedule marijuana past year, but the process became mired successful implicit a twelvemonth of ineligible and administrative wrangling, leaving the cause successful Schedule I status.

Marijuana has been deemed a Schedule I cause since the classification strategy was created successful 1970. In caller years, however, most states person approved the cause for definite aesculapian uses, and 24 states person legalized the cause recreationally. These authorities policies technically clash with national law, but the national authorities has opted against cracking down connected cannabis businesses that are licensed by states.

Some members of some parties person backed looser national marijuana regulations, often pointing to imaginable aesculapian benefits — and polling that shows Americans are progressively supportive of legalizing aesculapian oregon recreational uses of the drug.

During the 2024 campaign, Mr. Trump said helium planned to ballot yes connected an unsuccessful Florida ballot measurement to legalize marijuana recreationally successful the state. The measurement drew conscionable nether 56% of the vote, falling abbreviated of the 60% needed to pass.

"I judge it is clip to extremity needless arrests and incarcerations of adults for tiny amounts of marijuana for idiosyncratic use. We indispensable besides instrumentality astute regulations, portion providing entree for adults, to safe, tested product," the president wrote connected Truth Social past year.

But immoderate lawmakers stay wary. A radical of 9 House Republicans penned a missive implicit the summer urging Attorney General Pam Bondi not to displacement marijuana to a little schedule, arguing "there is nary capable subject oregon data" to enactment the change.

"Marijuana, portion antithetic than heroin, inactive has the imaginable for maltreatment and has nary scientifically proven aesculapian value," the missive states. "Therefore, rescheduling marijuana would not lone beryllium objectively wrong, but it would besides connote to our children that marijuana is safe. That couldn't beryllium further from the truth."

CBS News has reached retired to the White House for remark connected the expected enforcement order.