Trump signs order to fast-track marijuana reclassification
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA)-- President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an order directing federal agencies to fast-track the reclassification of marijuana, a move he described as “common sense,” while emphasizing that the action does not legalize the drug.
“I promise to be the president of common sense. And that is exactly what we’re doing,” Trump said.
The order aims to move marijuana from a Schedule I drug to Schedule III under the federal Controlled Substances Act. The shift would primarily allow the Food and Drug Administration to expand research into cannabis, administration officials said.
Marijuana is currently classified by the Drug Enforcement Administration as a Schedule I substance, a category reserved for drugs considered to have a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use. Heroin is also listed as a Schedule I drug.
Under Schedule III, marijuana would be considered less addictive and placed in the same category as drugs such as Tylenol with codeine and testosterone.
The change would not legalize marijuana for recreational use, and state laws would remain in effect. In Texas, recreational marijuana use remains illegal.
At Mango Cannabis, a dispensary in Sunland Park, New Mexico, owner said the most immediate impact would be on medical research.
“A lot of medical research is going to change overnight,” the owner said.
While the proposed reclassification could ease some federal restrictions, the dispensary’s owner said it would not immediately transform the industry.
“Nothing will change overnight,” he said. “But it could make it easier to operate, easier to hire, easier to expand and just overall run a profitable business.”
Customers at the dispensary expressed surprise at marijuana’s current classification. One customer said he was shocked to learn it is treated the same as heroin under federal law.
“Overall, it’s not addictive whatsoever,” he said. “Anybody can stop at any point.”
Another customer, Christian Rodriguez, said he uses marijuana recreationally and views it as comparable to alcohol.
“This is just as much as beer or anything else really. It’s just a pastime,” Rodriguez said.
He also said he uses marijuana to help manage chronic pain and sleep.
“I have horrible neck pain, and I needed to actually go to sleep a lot of the time,” he said.
