{"id":75373,"date":"2024-05-16T04:17:33","date_gmt":"2024-05-16T12:17:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/05\/16\/congressional-researchers-update-lawmakers-on-legal-consequences-of-federal-marijuana-prohibition-in-light-of-rescheduling-effort\/"},"modified":"2024-05-16T12:46:02","modified_gmt":"2024-05-16T20:46:02","slug":"congressional-researchers-update-lawmakers-on-legal-consequences-of-federal-marijuana-prohibition-in-light-of-rescheduling-effort","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/05\/16\/congressional-researchers-update-lawmakers-on-legal-consequences-of-federal-marijuana-prohibition-in-light-of-rescheduling-effort\/","title":{"rendered":"Congressional Researchers Update Lawmakers On \u2018Legal Consequences\u2019 Of Federal Marijuana Prohibition In Light Of Rescheduling Effort"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

With the Biden administration moving to reschedule marijuana<\/a>, congressional researchers have updated a pair of reports outlining the \u201clegal consequences\u201d of the persisting federal-state cannabis policy gap and detailing existing protections for state medical marijuana programs under a spending bill rider.<\/p>\n

The reports from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) were both updated on Tuesday, noting prominently that the Justice Department is now moving to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III, rather than Schedule I, drug under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).<\/p>\n

This comes about a week after CRS issued a separate report focused on the impact, and limitations, of a Schedule III reclassification<\/a>, including the fact that the reform would not bring state marijuana markets into compliance with federal law because it would still be considered illegal without a prescription.<\/p>\n

One of the newly updated reports is titled \u201cState Marijuana \u2018Legalization\u2019 and Federal Drug Law: A Brief Overview for Congress.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn light of recent and proposed changes to state and federal marijuana regulation, this Sidebar provides an overview of the divergence between federal and state marijuana law,\u201d the analysis says. \u201cIt then briefly discusses the legal consequences of the divergence and outlines certain related considerations for Congress.\u201d<\/p>\n

The five-page document first generally explains how marijuana is currently classified under the CSA, while noting that cannabis containing no more than 0.3 percent THC by dry weight is considered federally legal hemp.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf marijuana were moved from Schedule I to Schedule III, it could in theory be dispensed and used by prescription for medical purposes,\u201d CRS said. \u201cHowever, prescription drugs must be approved by FDA. Although FDA has approved some drugs derived from or related to cannabis, marijuana itself is not an FDA-approved drug.\u201d<\/p>\n

While federal prohibition is still in force, and would remain so even with rescheduling, the report<\/a> notes that \u201call but three states have changed their laws to permit the use of cannabis for medical purposes,\u201d while nearly half have enacted adult-use legalization.<\/p>\n

\u201cNotwithstanding the foregoing state laws, any activity involving marijuana that is not authorized under the CSA remains a federal crime anywhere in the United States, including in states that have purported to legalize medical or recreational marijuana,\u201d it says.<\/p>\n

It then goes through a variety of potential criminal liabilities for marijuana-related activity under federal statute.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor individuals, participation in the state-legal marijuana industry may have adverse immigration consequences. Violations of the CSA may also affect individuals\u2019 ability to receive certain federal government benefits. In addition, federal law prohibits gun ownership and possession by any person who is an \u2018unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance,\u2019 with no exception for users of state-legal medical marijuana.\u201d<\/p>\n

The report concludes with considerations for Congress, pointing out that while the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has agreed to move forward with rescheduling, lawmakers have \u201cbroad authority to change the status of marijuana by legislation before or after DEA makes any final scheduling decision.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Congress seeks to regulate marijuana more stringently, it could, among other options, repeal the appropriations rider discussed above, increase DOJ funding to prosecute CSA violations, or limit federal funds for states that legalize marijuana,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

CRS separately updated a report<\/a> that focuses on the appropriations rider that\u2019s been annually renewed each year since 2014. It generally prevents the Justice Department from using its funds to interfere in the implementation of state medical cannabis programs.<\/p>\n

While the legislation is meant to address the \u201cdisparity between state and federal laws,\u201d it does not extend the protections to adult-use states, the report explains.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn its face, the appropriations rider bars DOJ from taking legal action against the states directly in order to prevent them from promulgating or enforcing medical marijuana laws,\u201d it says. \u201cIn addition, federal courts have interpreted the rider to prohibit certain federal prosecutions of private individuals or organizations that produce, distribute, or possess marijuana in accordance with state medical marijuana laws. \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn those cases, criminal defendants have invoked the rider before trial, seeking either the dismissal of their indictments or injunctions barring prosecution,\u201d it continues, adding that federal courts have generally declined to apply the rider outside of that pre-trial context, by upholding a prohibition on cannabis use by people on probation, for example.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile the medical marijuana appropriations rider restricts DOJ\u2019s ability to bring some marijuana prosecutions, its effect is limited in several ways,\u201d CRS said. \u201cIf Congress instead opted to repeal the rider or allow it to lapse, DOJ would be able to prosecute future CSA violations as well as past violations that occurred while the rider was in effect, subject to the applicable statute of limitations.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause the medical marijuana appropriations rider applies to marijuana specifically, regardless of how the substance is classified under the CSA, rescheduling marijuana would not affect the rider,\u201d the report says.<\/p>\n

\u201cCongress has the authority to enact legislation to clarify or alter the scope of the appropriations rider, repeal the rider, or decline to include it in future appropriations laws. For instance, Congress could amend the rider to specify whether strict compliance with state medical marijuana law is required in order to bar prosecution under the CSA or provide a different standard that DOJ and the courts should apply. Congress could also expand the scope of the rider to bar the expenditure of funds on prosecutions related to recreational marijuana or other controlled substances.\u201d<\/p>\n

As both reports note, Congress could move to eliminate the federal-state marijuana policy gap by removing it from the CSA altogether. Other proposals, including one recently filed by top Senate Democrats, would go further by legalizing cannabis and setting up a federal regulatory framework for the plant<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But given the divided Congress and the anti-cannabis record of House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), it seems unlikely that the bill will advance this session. Instead, advocates and stakeholders are watching to see how the rescheduling effort plays out, while also putting pressure on lawmakers to pass a bipartisan marijuana banking bill that\u2019s pending Senate floor action.<\/p>\n

\n

German Lawmakers Will Consider Changes To Marijuana Legalization Law Related To Social Clubs And Impaired Driving This Week<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.<\/em><\/p>\n

The post Congressional Researchers Update Lawmakers On \u2018Legal Consequences\u2019 Of Federal Marijuana Prohibition In Light Of Rescheduling Effort<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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With the Biden administration moving to reschedule marijuana, congressional researchers have updated a pair of reports outlining the \u201clegal consequences\u201d of the persisting federal-state cannabis policy gap and detailing existing protections for state medical marijuana programs under a spending bill rider. The reports from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) wereContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75373"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75373"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75373\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":75374,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75373\/revisions\/75374"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75373"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75373"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75373"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}