After 50 Years, It’s Time to Fully Deschedule Cannabis

The Time Has Come: Why Cannabis Should Be Fully Descheduled After 50 Years

Listen: After 50 Years

Summary

• The recent proposal by the DEA to reclassify cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the CSA is not enough.
• We need to advocate for complete descheduling.

The recent proposal by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to reclassify cannabis from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) is a step, but it’s insufficient. We need to push for the complete descheduling of cannabis.

Understanding the Classification

The CSA categorizes substances into five schedules based on medical use and abuse potential. Schedule I substances, including cannabis, ecstasy, heroin, and LSD, are deemed to have no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Schedule V substances, like certain cough medicines, are considered to have a low potential for abuse.

Cannabis has been a Schedule I substance since the CSA’s inception in 1970 during Nixon’s presidency. Initially intended as a temporary classification pending review, Nixon ignored the commission’s recommendation to decriminalize cannabis. Instead, he used the classification to target and control specific communities, particularly Black people and the anti-war movement, as highlighted by the American Civil Liberties Union.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ 2023 review found cannabis to be less dangerous than alcohol, which has never been scheduled under the CSA. This classification fails to reflect cannabis’s medical potential or its actual effects.

The Current Challenge

Marta Nelson, director of sentencing reform at Vera, questions why the Biden administration criminalizes cannabis without a prescription, while ignoring similar public health concerns for alcohol and tobacco. The disparity, coupled with the drug’s legality in many states, makes its continued criminalization unacceptable, particularly given the disproportionate impact on Black and other communities of color.

Reclassifying cannabis as a Schedule III drug acknowledges its medical use but keeps possession without a prescription a crime under federal law. Full descheduling, however, would allow regulation similar to alcohol and tobacco, removing criminal penalties for users.

Why It Matters

Despite the racist origins and harmful impact of the War on Drugs being well-documented, the punitive approach persists. Black adults are still disproportionately arrested for marijuana offenses, despite comparable usage rates between Black and white individuals.

President Biden has acknowledged that cannabis-related arrests and convictions create barriers to employment, housing, and education. Moving cannabis to Schedule III does nothing to remove these barriers, but full descheduling could start to address the damage caused by its criminalization.

Efforts should also be made to rectify the harm experienced over decades of criminalization. While President Biden has pardoned thousands convicted of simple cannabis possession, federal policy still lags behind public sentiment and state laws. Congress could pass legislation like the HOPE Act, Clean Slate Act, or Fresh Start Act to facilitate sealing criminal records. The Department of Justice could also prioritize resources for record sealing.

The Public’s Stance and the Path Forward

A Gallup poll found that 70% of Americans support cannabis legalization. Twenty-four states, three territories, and the District of Columbia have legalized both medical and recreational cannabis, with another 14 states legalizing it for medical purposes only. Five states are advancing legalization legislation. Rescheduling cannabis is insufficient and fails to address inconsistencies between federal and state laws.

It’s time for federal policy to align with public sentiment. Cannabis should be removed from the CSA, marking a step toward full legalization and addressing the harms of criminalization. During this comment period, we have the opportunity to urge the DEA to correct decades of poor policy by fully descheduling cannabis.