Maggie Hart, [email protected]
Washington, D.C. – Today, President Trump signed an Executive Order directing the attorney general to expedite and complete the process to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). In response, the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), joined by medical, law enforcement, and industry leaders, warned that rescheduling puts corporate interests above everyday people’s health and wellbeing, urging the administration and Congress instead to deschedule marijuana.
Rescheduling marijuana acknowledges that marijuana has medical value and could lift some, but not all, restrictions on research into marijuana. Rescheduling also offers tax benefits to marijuana businesses. However, under Schedule III, federal marijuana criminalization would remain in place. As a result, rescheduling does not meaningfully change the real-world consequences of continued criminalization for most people, which include needless arrests and incarceration, and lasting barriers to jobs, housing, healthcare, and food assistance that result from arrest records.
Learn more: Marijuana Rescheduling Frequently Asked Questions.
Rescheduling marijuana to Schedule III could expand some research into marijuana and acknowledges marijuana’s medical value. However, Schedule III perpetuates the following harms to Americans:
Kassandra Frederique, Executive Director, Drug Policy Alliance:
“Americans have waited a long time for the U.S. government to acknowledge what the President said today: cannabis has medical value. But it’s important to be clear about what Schedule III does and does not do. While it may ease some research restrictions, it’s still unclear what real relief it will provide to everyday Americans who rely on cannabis to manage pain. The announcement also benefits large corporations without a clear pathway for affordable access for patients and consumers. Rescheduling does not end the harms of criminalization. Millions of Americans will still face arrest records that limit access to housing, jobs, and opportunity, leaving the long-standing impacts of cannabis criminalization in place. Americans want legalization that works: limited to adults, with accurate labeling, strong public health protections, real opportunities for small businesses and workers, and tax revenue that reinvests in communities. If people still risk arrest, eviction, or a lost job—and patients still can’t afford or legally access the medicine they rely on—this announcement does not offer enough relief for Americans.”
Bryon Adinoff, MD, President, Doctors for Drug Policy Reform:
“Rescheduling cannabis to Schedule III could reduce some barriers to cannabis research but would leave virtually all cannabis products illegal, except for a small number approved by the FDA as medicines. Only by descheduling cannabis can the federal government finally end criminalization and begin treating cannabis as a public health issue—through regulation that protects consumers, research that helps us better understand potential benefits and risks, and medical access for those who need it most.”
Eric Sterling, assistant counsel to the Subcommittee on Crime, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives, 1979-1989; former executive director of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation:
“We need cannabis out of the Controlled Substances Act and off the list of federal drug schedules. Most of us who work in the criminal justice system—cops, prosecutors, judges, courts personnel and corrections—know that cannabis prohibition is a waste of time and money. Many of us have seen firsthand how cannabis prohibition leads to abuses and discriminatory outcomes. Almost no one thinks the current federal laws regarding cannabis reflect any semblance of reality regarding its low risk to public health and safety. Everyone who works in law enforcement and criminal justice finds the incongruity between federal cannabis prohibition and state cannabis regulation programs confusing and dismaying.”
Amber Senter, Executive Director, Supernova Women:
“Rescheduling cannabis to Schedule III is not enough. While it may help with tax relief for licensed operators, it continues the criminalization and stigma that have devastated Black and Brown communities for decades. Schedule III keeps barriers in place for research, patient access, and justice reform. True progress is full descheduling. Only descheduling will allow states to regulate cannabis without federal interference, open banking and capital opportunities for small businesses, and begin to repair the harm caused by the war on drugs. Anything short of descheduling is a half-measure that continues to perpetuate inequity and injustice.”
Damian Fagon, Cannabis and Equity Expert, Parabola Center for Law and Policy:
“Rescheduling to Schedule III may eliminate a punitive tax penalty, but it leaves core policy failures untouched. It does not remove banking barriers, clear criminal records, or safeguard state equity programs. And without regulatory guardrails, it risks trading prohibition for monopoly as the largest corporations consolidate control while small, local businesses are squeezed out of the market. Real reform demands full decriminalization with rules that prevent excessive consolidation and ensure legalization delivers justice and opportunity to the communities harmed most by prohibition.”
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About the Drug Policy Alliance
The Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) addresses the harms of drug use and drug criminalization through policy solutions, organizing, and public education. We advocate for a holistic approach to drugs that prioritizes health, social supports, and community wellbeing. DPA opposes punitive approaches that destabilize people, block access to care, and drain communities of resources. We believe that the regulation of drugs should be grounded in evidence, health, equity, and human rights. In collaboration with other movements, we change laws, advance justice, and save lives.
