Key Takeaways
- The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will hold a hearing on Dec. 2 to consider reclassifying marijuana as a less harmful drug.
- The DEA currently classifies marijuana in the same category as heroin, LSD, and other substances considered to have a high potential for abuse.
- The December date means a resolution on the issue won't come until after the 2024 presidential election between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.
Cannabis stocks slumped Tuesday after the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced a hearing that could reclassify marijuana as a less harmful, Schedule III drug won’t come until Dec. 2—after the 2024 presidential election.
Canopy Growth Corp. (CGC) stock closed off about 9.5% Tuesday after the news, with Tilray Brands (TLRY) dropping nearly 6% and Aurora Cannabis (ACB) sliding almost 5%.
AdvisorShare Pure U.S. Cannabis ETF (MSOS), the largest 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:exchange-🅘tradedꩲ fund (ETF) for cannabis stocks, tumbled about 13%.
For decades, marijuana has been classified under the Controlled Substances Act as a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Schedule I drug, making it illegal under federal law and placing it alongside heroin, LSD, and other substances considered to have high potential for abuse.
By compari🌃son, the DEA considers Schedule III drugs to have a moderate to low potential for dependence. Examples include anabolic steroids, Tylenol with codeine, and ketamine.
Election Impact
Scheduling the hearing after the election matters because the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:candidates may have different ap🅘💎proaches to marijuana legalization.
Vice President Kamala Harris called on the Department of Justice to speed up the rescheduling of marijuana in March after the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Department of Health and Human S𒊎ervices recommended the agency do so last year.
Former President Donald Trump has been harder to nail down on cannabis policy, but, as president in 2018, he said he "probably" would support a bipartisan bill that would have effectively ended the federal ban on marijuana.