As President Donald Trump prepares a historic relaxation of marijuana restrictions, Americans may wonder what it means for buying and using the country’s most popular illicit drug. The answer: Not that much.
Reclassifying the drug from its status as the most tightly regulated Schedule I substance would not legalize or decriminalize cannabis. You won’t see it start to appear in pharmacies or liquor stores.
The change is poised to have bigger effects on legal businesses and medical research than the average consumer, cannabis experts say.
“Symbolically, it suggests that maybe marijuana isn’t as harmful as people thought. Maybe it does have some health benefits,” said Robert Mikos, a professor at Vanderbilt Law School who specializes in drug law. “On the practical side though, the impact is pretty muted.”
Schedule I drugs, including heroin and LSD, are deemed by the federal government to have no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Federal law prohibits the cultivation and possession of Schedule I drugs, except for approved research studies.
Trump is moving to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III substance, which includes prescription drugs such as anabolic steroids, ketamine and testosterone, according to people familiar with his plans. Drugs in that category are considered to have medical use and moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.
The Biden administration sought to reclassifycannabis, with Attorney General Merrick Garland recommending the shift in 2023. But the effort stalled when it went to the Drug Enforcement Administration for review.
Marijuana advocates say full legalization is ideal, but reclassification is a step in the right direction.
“While such a move potentially provides some benefits to patients, and veterans especially, it still falls well short of the changes necessary to bring federal marijuana policy into the 21st century,” Paul Armentano, deputy director of NORML, a marijuana legalization advocacy organization, said in a statement.
Cannabis should be removed from the Controlled Substances Act altogether, Armentano said, allowing governments to regulate marijuana the way they do for tobacco and alcohol.
Instead, cannabis is mired in a confusing legal landscape of conflicting state and federal laws, and authorities choosing to ignore violations. Recreational use of cannabis is legal in 24 states, and medicinal use is permitted in 40. Two-thirds of American adults believe it should be legal, according to Gallup poll of U.S. adults conducted in October.
Reclassification won’t change most people’s everyday experiences with marijuana. Dispensaries in states where sales are legalized still run afoul of federal law.
Carrying marijuana gummies onto a plane would still technically be illegal, even if having the edibles is legal in the state where you live. But simply keeping them in your luggage during air travel doesn’t mean you’ll be arrested. Air travel is federally regulated, but airport security is looking for potential threats to aviation, not illegal drugs alone, according to the Transportation Security Administration.
Possession of Schedule I substances is a federal crime, but marijuana is illegal federally regardless of how it’s classified. Still, few people go to prison just for having marijuana, and most prosecutions happen at the state level.
Reclassification is essentially a tax break for marijuana businesses, helping legitimize the industry while potentially facilitating additional research, advocates for the move say.
Industry groups have called for the change as it confronts competition with the illicit drug market, high taxes and falling prices.
The Internal Revenue Service does not allow companies that sell Schedule I drugs to deduct their business expenses, meaning cannabis sellers face steep effective tax rates, often more than 70 percent.
A substantial reduction in the tax rate would allow businesses to lower their prices and more effectively compete with the illicit market, industry officials said.
Some cannabis advocates, however, worry that reclassification could hurt businesses. They worry that the federal government acknowledging the medicinal value of the drug would embolden the Food and Drug Administration to block recreational marijuana and hold therapeutic products to the high bar needed to sell medicine. Other experts say that outcome is unlikely because the FDA has taken a hands-off approach for years.
Schedule I drugs have the highest level of restrictions on medical research. While some researchers have found ways around those rules to study the drug’s benefits and risks, reclassification could simplify their work by reducing requirements to obtain and store cannabis.
Darrell Carrington, a lobbyist for cannabis companies in Maryland, said more research will further legitimize the industry and product.
“I’m over the moon,” he said. “My face is hurting from smiling.”
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