https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2024/05/justice-department-poised-to-post-plans-for-marijuana-reclassification-00158378
The Department of Justice plans to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking on Thursday that would reclassify marijuana to a less restrictive category, according to two Biden administration officials familiar with the decision.
This is the next step in the rescheduling process begun by President Joe Biden in October 2022 that is set to be the largest shift in federal drug policy in decades.
It follows a recommendation by the Department of Health and Human Services in August to reclassify marijuana, which currently is a Schedule I drug on the Controlled Substances Act — the most severe classification, the same as heroin. The DOJ decision to reclassify would move cannabis to Schedule III — a category that means it’s determined to have both medical benefits and some potential for abuse. It’s the same category as ketamine.
The change reflects seismic changes in cannabis policy across the country. Over the last 12 years, 24 states legalized marijuana possession for adults, and 38 states established medical marijuana programs. More than half of Americans now live in states where marijuana is recreationally legal at the state level.
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