While President Donald Trump weighs an administrative move to change cannabis’ federal classification, a Republican lawmaker has put forward a bill to make that change permanent through legislation.
Representative Greg Steube has once again introduced the “Marijuana 1-to-3 Act,” marking the fourth time he has filed the measure in consecutive sessions. The bill’s name refers to shifting marijuana from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3 of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).This would place marijuana in the same category as substances considered to have lower abuse potential and recognized medical uses.
The Biden administration began the rescheduling effort last year. Trump backed the idea while campaigning, but his position since taking office has been less direct. He recently stated that his administration was still reviewing the matter and would make a decision in the coming weeks.
Steube’s legislation would bypass administrative uncertainty by writing the change into law. That would make the policy less vulnerable to being reversed or challenged in court. The short, two-page bill instructs the U.S. attorney general to move cannabis from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3 within 60 days of the law taking effect.
The filing came a day after Trump was asked about the Biden-led rescheduling process. Where he ultimately stands on the rescheduling issue remains unclear. While he acknowledged both sides of the debate, he did not commit to following through with it. Speaking at the press conference, he noted that some people strongly oppose cannabis, believing it harms both youth and adults, while others support reform.
In response, Steube and Democratic Representative Dina Titus urged the president to move forward. Steube criticized the current federal stance, noting that cannabis is grouped with drugs like LSD and heroin, while cocaine is treated as less restricted. He noted the reclassification would open the door for more medical research and bring federal drug laws in line with reality.
Earlier this year, Steube also introduced the first marijuana-related bill of the 119th Congress. That legislation would protect military veterans from losing federal benefits if they legally use medical marijuana under state law.
Meanwhile, new DEA Administrator Terrence Cole has not placed marijuana rescheduling among his official agency priorities. Instead, his focus list includes combating drug trafficking, targeting Mexican cartels, disrupting fentanyl distribution, and addressing dark web and crypto-related crime.
This is despite his earlier testimony during his Senate confirmation hearing when he identified reviewing cannabis rescheduling as one of his first tasks in office.
The marijuana industry, including companies like Trulieve Cannabis Corp. (OTCQX: TCNNF) (CNX: TRUL) will be waiting for concrete scheduling changes because many bills and speeches have previously been made regarding the classification of marijuana in the CSA but nothing has materialized.
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