In an interesting turn of events, albeit expected, Merrick Garland, U.S. Attorney General, has submitted a notice of proposed rulemaking to the Federal Register. The content of the notice is to move marijuana from the Schedule I to the Schedule III category under the Controlled Substances Act.

This move was announced by the U.S. Justice Department on Thursday, May 16. It begins a 60-day comment period for members of the public to put down their remarks and thoughts regarding the proposal.

Meanwhile, on X (formerly Twitter), a video of President Joe Robinette Biden was released by the White House praising the rulemaking notice. The President acknowledged the advantages of the drug, citing that "far too many lives have been lo-st due to a failed approach to marijuana."

While this might seem slight, it is a big win for President Biden. He has always championed the idea of "rescheduling" marijuana.

This new task comes after the United States Drug Enforcement Agency announced the intention to reschedule marijuana. It also comes after an announcement by the United States Department of Health and Human Services that marijuana was now accepted as a medical drug in Maryland. It is also agreed that it is less threatening than other Schedule I drugs.

It is important to note that this proposed rulemaking does not incorporate a draft rule. The rulemaking process requires rule crafting with stakeholder input, which takes a long time - between several months and more than a year. Interested parties are expected to submit their suggestions and comments to the Federal Docket Management System as required.

Rulemaking can take a lot of time. However this rulemaking has been more welcomed than ostracized by the public. It is expected that the Justice Department will move as fast as possible on making a decision in this regard.

Do not be surprised to see a late summer administrative hearing scheduled. By then the finer details of the rulemaking will be brought to light. It will be interesting to see how the rule will affect standing state licensed adult and medical use cannabis licensees.

However, how the rescheduling will affect the sector or industry remains unclear. Cannabis businesses should, nevertheless, expect to get relief as required by the Internal Revenue Code (Section 280E). This section addresses the limiting of deductions and credits made available to cannabis businesses for the cost of vended goods. It is no news that this section has cost businesses millions of dollars in deductions, which are usually available to businesses in other sectors.

Now that the rescheduling has gone public, several publicly traded cannabis businesses have sent out announcements of amendments in their federal tax returns. This is to ensure that all additional deductions made available are reflected. The excess cash available to these operators can be used to expand the business or service debts, depending on the business decision.

Worthy of note is that the rescheduling plan will not be the channel the cannabis industry has always needed to access major financial institutions along with their traditional lending and banking opportunities. Unless Congress takes any further action on this matter, cannabis businesses will not be able to access the payment and credit card systems enjoyed by businesses in other sectors.

Rescheduling cannabis has been the dream work of many United States senators, politicians, and citizens. "Cannabis can be a good addition to the treatment of many illnesses due to its myriad medical benefits if properly harnessed," says attorney Kush Arora of Maryland Criminal Defense Law Group. Hopefully, the rescheduling will be pushed as fast as possible so that the dreams of many will be realized.

Source: Maryland Criminal Defense Law Group, Maryland