President Joe Biden’s move to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I substance to a Schedule III substance under the Controlled Substance Act is officially underway following the attorney general’s submitting a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to the Federal Register.

The notice was submitted late last week, May 16, so now the formal rulemaking process can begin.

The reclassification was called for by President Joe Biden in October 2022 when he:

• Announced the pardon of all prior Federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana

• Urged governors to also pardon those incarcerated under state law for simple possession of marijuana

• Asked the secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the attorney general to initiate the administrative process to review expeditiously how marijuana is scheduled under federal law

“Look, folks, no one should be in jail merely for using or possessing marijuana period. Far too many lives have been upended because of failed approach to marijuana, and I'm committed to writing those wrongs,” Biden said in a video posted on X last week. “You have my word on it.”

The president called the proposal to reclassify marijuana as “monumental.”

“Today my administration took a major step to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I drug to Schedule III drug. It's an important move toward reversing long-standing inequities,” the president said in the video. “Today's announcement builds on the work we've already done to partner a record number of federal offenses for simple possession of marijuana.”

Examples of Schedule II & Schedule III Drugs

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Schedule I drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. The reclassification would remove marijuana from Schedule I, which includes things like heroin, LSD, and ecstasy.

If reclassified, marijuana would join things like Tylenol with codeine and testosterone as a Schedule III drug.

Examples of Schedule I drugs are:

• Heroin

• Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)

• Marijuana (cannabis)

• 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (ecstasy)

• Methaqualone

• Peyote

Examples of Schedule III drugs are:

• Products containing less than 90 milligrams of codeine per dosage unit (Tylenol with codeine)

• Ketamine

• Anabolic steroids

• Testosterone

The DEA reports Schedule III drugs have a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence and notes that Schedule III drug abuse potential is less than Schedule I and Schedule II drugs but more than Schedule IV.

Leading Up to the Proposed Rulemaking Process

After Biden asked the attorney general and the secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to launch a scientific review of how marijuana is scheduled under federal law, HHS made a recommendation that marijuana be moved to Schedule III last August.

At that point, the attorney general contacted the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) on questions relevant to this rulemaking. In light of HHS’ medical and scientific determinations, and OLC’s legal advice, the attorney general exercised his authority to initiate the rulemaking process to transfer marijuana to Schedule III, said a DOJ press release.

Following the posting of the Proposed Rule Making to the Federal Register, the public is allowed to comment. However, the preferred method of communication is through electronic comment through the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Paper comments, meaning ones submitted by mail, are discouraged.

All comments submitted become part of the public record.