The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is set to hold a public hearing in six weeks on December 2 regarding its proposal to reschedule marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act.
The DEA announced the hearing in August, stating, “This is notice that the Drug Enforcement Administration will hold a hearing with respect to the proposed rescheduling of marijuana into schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act.” The rescheduling proposal was initially published in the Federal Register on May 21, 2024.
The hearing is scheduled to take place at 700 Army Navy Drive, Arlington, VA, starting at 9 a.m. Eastern Time. Participants interested in speaking at the event were required to submit a notice of participation by September 30. The DEA also noted that the hearing could be moved to a different location or continued on subsequent days without prior notice, depending on the presiding officer’s discretion.
This hearing follows a 60-day public comment period in which the agency received over 40,000 responses, with more than 90% in favor of rescheduling or fully descheduling marijuana. Following the hearing, the DEA is expected to issue a final ruling, which will outline the next steps and the effective date if rescheduling moves forward. A final ruling is expected to be published in the Federal Register within 60 days of the hearing, with the actual law change coming 30 days after that, putting marijuana on track to be rescheduled sometime between January and March 2025.
The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), the nation’s oldest marijuana advocacy group, has filed its intent to participate in the hearing, citing its longstanding role in cannabis reform and its commitment to representing cannabis consumers across the U.S.
