Trump Justice Department Moves State-Licensed Medical Marijuana From Schedule I to Schedule III

President Donald Trump’s Justice Department reclassified certain state-licensed medical marijuana products as less dangerous drugs by moving them from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act, a change Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced on Thursday, April 23.

“02:27 01:27 01:18 01:07 01:13 04:28 01:11 02:31 04:16 20 Minutes avec AFP Published on December 19, 2025 at 3:53 AM As he wages war against fentanyl, Donald Trump decided Thursday to ease up a bit on marijuana”

20 Minutes

The People report says the decision means “FDA-approved products containing marijuana and marijuana products regulated by a state medical marijuana license” will be considered Schedule III drugs defined as “drugs with a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.”

20 Minutes

Time Magazine similarly frames the move as an order “changing the federal classification of medical marijuana” to “a Schedule 3 drug,” while Associated Press describes it as shifting licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I to the “less strictly regulated Schedule III.”

The Associated Press account adds that the Thursday order “does not legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use under federal law,” and People likewise says the move “does not legalize marijuana on a federal level.”

Multiple outlets also connect the change to tax and research: Associated Press says it is “a boon for the industry” because it gives dispensaries “a big tax break” and “eases some barriers to researching cannabis,” while LiveNOW from FOX says “For the first time, state-licensed medical marijuana companies will be allowed to deduct business expenses on their federal taxes.”

The Hill and Scientific American both emphasize that the order is limited, with The Hill stating it “would not immediately be legalized” and that marijuana not distributed through a state medical marijuana program “will, for now, continue to be classified in Schedule I.”

In short, the reclassification is a federal regulatory demotion for qualifying medical products, not a nationwide legalization, even as it changes how the federal government treats those state-licensed items.

The reclassification is also portrayed as the first step toward a broader federal rescheduling of marijuana beyond medical products, with an administrative hearing scheduled for late June.

Associated Press says “A new administrative hearing slated for the end of June could result in the reclassification of marijuana more broadly,” potentially granting “tax and other benefits to state-licensed recreational markets, too.”

Associated Press

Politico provides a specific date, saying the Justice Department “would schedule an administrative hearing on June 29 to expedite the process of rescheduling marijuana more broadly to Schedule III,” while CNBC similarly reports that the DEA will evaluate whether to extend Schedule III status to cannabis broadly “in a hearing scheduled for June 29.”

People adds that the DEA would hold “a hearing in Juneto consider reclassifying recreational cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule II, as well,” and Scientific American describes an “expedited administrative hearing process” aimed at rescheduling cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III broadly.

Time Magazine and Associated Press both stress that the Thursday order does not legalize marijuana under federal law, but they frame the hearing as a mechanism for further federal action.

Associated Press quotes Boston-based cannabis industry attorney Jesse Alderman saying, “This is a signal that this administration means business on getting this done,” tying the hearing to momentum for additional policy changes.

The Hill similarly says the order “calls for an ‘expedited hearing’ to reschedule marijuana and state-licensed marijuana” from Schedule I to Schedule III, and it notes that the process is intended to jump-start broader reclassification.

Even outlets that focus on local implications describe the hearing as part of the next phase: WPR says “An administrative hearing on that matter is set for June 29,” while IndyStar says the order “expedites an administrative hearing, set to begin in June, to consider the broader reclassification of marijuana writ large.”

Taken together, the sources depict a two-stage federal approach: immediate Schedule III treatment for qualifying medical products, followed by a June hearing that could reshape the federal status of marijuana more broadly.

Across the reporting, the Justice Department’s rationale centers on expanding access to medical treatment options and enabling research into safety and efficacy.

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Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is quoted in multiple outlets making the same core claim: Scientific American says, “The Department of Justice is delivering on President [Donald] Trump’s promise to expand Americans’ access to medical treatment options,” and it adds that “This rescheduling action allows for research on the safety and efficacy of this substance, ultimately providing patients with better care and doctors with more reliable information.”

Politico likewise quotes Blanche’s statement that the rescheduling “allows for research on the safety and efficacy of this substance, ultimately providing patients with better care and doctors with more reliable information.”

LiveNOW from FOX repeats Blanche’s framing that the Department is “delivering on President Trump’s promise,” and it includes the same line about research enabling “better care and doctors with more reliable information.”

The Associated Press account adds that the order “eases some barriers to researching cannabis,” and it describes the regulatory shift as moving licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I—“reserved for drugs without medical use and with high potential for abuse”—to Schedule III.

Time Magazine provides additional background on the DEA classification logic, stating that drugs are assigned categories based on “whether they have an accepted medical use and whether they’re likely to cause addiction,” and it notes that Schedule 1 has been the category since 1970 alongside heroin and LSD.

It also connects the change to a broader federal push: People says the move follows an executive order signed by Trump in December 2025 ordering the Justice Department to reclassify medical marijuana and clear the way for CBD products, while Associated Press says Trump told his administration in December to work as quickly as possible to reclassify marijuana.

People also includes Trump’s own remarks at a White House event, quoting him saying, “The military is very happy about it and a lot of people suffering from big problems — which this seems to be the best answer — they're very happy about it.”

In the sources, the administration’s case is that the federal government is changing the regulatory environment for state-licensed medical products so researchers and clinicians can work with fewer federal constraints, while still keeping marijuana controlled under federal law.

Not all reactions in the sources are supportive, and several outlets highlight concerns about whether the Schedule III shift is justified and how it could affect public health and compliance.

Associated Press quotes Dr. Smita Das, an addiction psychiatrist at Stanford University, saying there are no “massive medical indications for cannabis,” and it adds that cannabis use disorder “has been on the rise,” with Das warning, “This will probably just add to that.”

CNBC

The Associated Press report also describes a broader critique that the reclassification is not full legalization and that critics want measures addressing harms from prohibition, especially in minority communities.

People includes a counterpoint from Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, who wrote, “Marijuana today is much more potent than just ten or twenty years ago, leading to increased psychosis, anti-social behavior, and fatal car crashes,” and added, “Arkansans don’t want more dangerous drugs obtained more easily. A change to marijuana’s drug classification is a step in the wrong direction.”

The Hill and LiveNOW from FOX both emphasize that the move does not make marijuana legal for recreational use at the federal level, and LiveNOW says “Marijuana products that are not distributed through a state medical marijuana program will continue to be classified in Schedule I.”

That creates a compliance and labeling problem that LiveNOW and CNBC both discuss in different ways: LiveNOW quotes Mike Feldman, general counsel for Nabis, saying “Two people can be using cannabis together - the same product purchased from the same place - one labeled medical marijuana and the other labeled for adult-use,” and it says “And now in one is placed in Schedule 1 and in another in Schedule 3, and that's completely unprecedented.”

Associated Press also notes confusion for dispensaries that serve both medical and recreational markets, quoting sociology professor Josh Meisel that “If this artificial distinction between medical and recreational is maintained, it raises all sorts of questions.”

CNBC adds that even with rescheduling, investors and companies still face obstacles because marijuana’s illicit status makes it difficult for firms to secure financing and investment from major financial institutions, and it quotes Kovler saying “clarity from the federal government that what the companies are doing will not be prosecuted.”

Together, the sources portray a policy shift that is simultaneously framed as medical progress by supporters and as a risk by critics, while also raising practical questions about how the same product can be treated differently depending on how it is purchased and categorized.

The sources connect the federal rescheduling to concrete effects for state-licensed operators, patients, and the cannabis industry, while also underscoring that marijuana remains illegal in some places.

“The Trump administration on Thursday moved to reclassify marijuana under federal law”

CNBC

IndyStar reports that in Indiana “Marijuana is still illegal in Indiana,” but it says Blanche’s order “reduces barriers to scientific research on the medical uses of cannabis and allows those companies to deduct business expenses on federal tax returns,” and it describes the order as “expediting an administrative hearing” for broader rescheduling.

Forbes

WPR similarly says the order “does not legalize marijuana at the federal level,” and it states that marijuana “remains largely illegal in Wisconsin, including for medicinal use,” even as activists are “hopeful the federal shift could be one step” toward state changes.

In Texas, FOX 4 News Dallas-Fort Worth reports that the change “does not legalize marijuana federally, but it opens up opportunities for more research into the drug’s potential medical benefits,” and it quotes Texas Original CEO Nico Richardson explaining how patients were “straddling this bifurcation of state and federal law.”

Richardson said, “But technically, from a federal standpoint, they were consuming a Schedule 1 narcotic, and the federal government did not recognize that,” and he argued the reclassification helps reduce “inherent liability that sat with patients during that time period.”

For the industry and investors, CNBC frames the stakes in financial terms, describing how rescheduling could remove the “tax penalty” tied to 280E and improve “free cash flow” and “a better balance sheet,” while also warning that the industry still faces “major obstacles” for financing and investment.

CNBC quotes Gerald Pascarelli saying, “It’s important to note that this industry still has its fair share of challenges,” and it quotes Kovler saying “clarity from the federal government that what the companies are doing will not be prosecuted” is needed.

Politico and Scientific American both describe the policy’s reach in terms of states and research access, with Politico saying it could “lend new legitimacy” to regulated medical programs operating in “more than 40 states,” and Scientific American noting that the change applies to state-regulated medical marijuana without legalizing medical or recreational cannabis federally.

Even where the sources discuss politics, they tie it back to the industry’s future: People reports that Trump said “So hopefully you don’t need it, but if you do need it, I hear it’s the best of all alternatives,” while CNBC notes House Speaker Mike Johnson opposes marijuana legalization and has called it a “gateway drug.”

Across these accounts, the reclassification is presented as a shift that changes federal treatment of qualifying medical products and potentially the economics of the sector, but it leaves unresolved the broader question of federal legality for recreational use and the practical consequences for compliance, research, and financing.