Justice Department ‘Should Take About 20 Years’ To Reschedule Marijuana, GOP Congressman Says
Marijuana rescheduling delay is the dish of the day in Washington—served cold, overcooked, and with a smirk. The Justice Department is sitting on a proposal to move cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act, even after a December executive order told them to plate it up fast. Meanwhile, a prohibitionist congressman from Maryland all but licked his chops and suggested the process should “take about 20 years.” The capital does this sometimes: stretches time like taffy and dares you to pretend it’s candy. For the cannabis industry and patients waiting on clarity, this isn’t a tasting menu—it’s a hunger strike dressed up as process. And every extra day of uncertainty keeps “cannabis industry impact,” “legal cannabis revenue,” and plain-old reality grinding in low gear.
The slow-walk, on purpose
Let’s be blunt. One camp wants the gears to seize up. Rep. Andy Harris, a longtime opponent of marijuana policy reform, isn’t hiding it. He hasn’t pressed DOJ directly, he says, because “everybody understands what I want it to look like.” Translation: no hurry, no mercy. He frames each non-action day as a win—another sunrise where the old order holds. But politics has a way of turning the lights up mid–after party. Redistricting has put heat under his seat back home, and even as he argues for delay, other Republicans are preparing for an opening. Congressional Cannabis Caucus co-chair Dave Joyce of Ohio says he and bipartisan colleagues will be ready when “opportunity does present itself.” The subtext: when this breaks, it may break fast. In Maryland, the policy weather is already changing—psychedelics are edging into the conversation, too—see Maryland Senators Weigh Bill To Extend Psychedelics Task Force Through 2027—and that broader reform wind doesn’t stop at one congressman’s office door.
Process purgatory: DOJ, DEA, and the fine print
Inside the federal maze, the language is careful and the motion incremental. Publicly, the Justice Department has played it close to the vest, offering little more than a nod that it’s seeking the “most expeditious means” to execute the executive order. That phrase matters. It hints that the pathway isn’t as simple as signing off on the existing Schedule III proposal drafted after a prior scientific review. There’s also procedural confusion: whispers of a fresh rescheduling rule when one is already pending would only reset the clock, inviting another round of comments and review. The Drug Enforcement Administration’s posture isn’t helping; the agency has said the rescheduling appeal process remains pending—bureaucratese for “don’t hold your breath.” On the Hill, two GOP senators tried to bottle up rescheduling with an amendment that never got airtime, while congressional researchers coolly noted that DOJ could, in theory, reject the directive or restart the science from scratch. Add to it an attorney general missing a deadline for rules to ease research barriers on Schedule I substances, and you start to see the outline of the thing: not a sprint, not even a jog, but a deliberate loiter on the threshold of change.
Here’s the bitter amuse-bouche in all this: everyone knows what Schedule III would—and wouldn’t—do. It wouldn’t legalize state markets. It would, however, relieve the chokehold of 280E taxation that makes compliant cannabis operators pay like they’re running a vice den while trying to act like any other business. It would nudge research forward, lower barriers for clinical work, and give institutional capital a little less vertigo. Patients might see steadier access and cleaner data. But timing is everything, and timing is political. Federal agencies are moving like they’ve never seen a clock before, even as the White House has publicly touted the order. For industry planners trying to model “federal cannabis rescheduling timeline” scenarios, that gap between promise and paper is the chasm.
Winners, losers, and everyone in the middle seat
Follow the ripple. If DOJ finalizes rescheduling to Schedule III, compliant operators could finally write off ordinary expenses, which could stabilize margins and shore up jobs in regulated markets. Researchers could track outcomes with less red tape, translating to standards that actually mean something beyond marketing gloss. Patients—especially seniors and veterans—might benefit as federal programs and payers inch toward evidence-based coverage; one early signpost in that direction arrived when a key federal step advanced a Medicare-related CBD test, captured in Federal Agency Finalized Rule For CBD Medicare Coverage Pilot Program Weeks Ago, Key Hemp Stakeholder Says. At the same time, the hemp-cannabis line can’t stay a legal Rorschach forever. Policy that ignores intoxicating hemp derivatives while slow-walking marijuana rescheduling is a recipe for market distortions and safety blind spots. If you want a roadmap that marries consumer protection to economic reality, start with pragmatic guardrails—see Congress Should Delay The Federal Hemp Ban And Instead Enact Regulations For THC And CBD Products (Op-Ed). That’s the kind of harmonization the “Michigan cannabis market,” the “California cannabis market,” or any legal state market is going to need if rescheduling is more than a headline.
Still, no one should confuse Schedule III with a cure-all. Banking remains half-pregnant. Interstate commerce is a mirage. And patients who’ve borne the brunt of prohibition’s red tape will keep waking up inside an obstacle course until Congress settles the larger argument. Budget fights and agency opacity only sharpen the edges—ask anyone tracking the fiscal crosswinds described in Federal Budget Leaves Medical Cannabis Patients More Uncertain Than Ever (Op-Ed). So yes, a powerful congressman can say “take 20 years,” but the ground is shifting beneath his feet, and not just in Maryland. The smarter bet is on messy, uneven progress—hurry up and wait, then suddenly move. In the meantime, if you’re looking to navigate today’s landscape with clean, compliant options while Washington dithers, take a look at our latest selection here: https://thcaorder.com/shop/.
