Republican Congressmember Andrew Clyde of Georgia has withdrawn an amendment to a fentanyl bill that sought to disrupt the ongoing effort to reschedule marijuana.
Clyde introduced the measure as an addition to the Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act (HALT Fentanyl Act), a bill designed to increase penalties for fentanyl-related offenses. Clyde’s proposal would have removed the U.S. attorney general’s authority to oversee drug scheduling decisions and blocked a revised scientific review standard used in the pending marijuana rescheduling process.
However, before a scheduled House Rules Committee meeting on Tuesday, Clyde unexpectedly withdrew the amendment without explanation.
The HALT Fentanyl Act also includes provisions to streamline research on Schedule I substances, including marijuana and certain psychedelics. Clyde’s amendment, had it advanced, would have required the attorney general to delegate drug scheduling decisions exclusively to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) administrator, explicitly barring any further delegation within the Justice Department.
A spokesperson for Congressmember Clyde says he has no plans to refile the amendment.
