FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is seeking to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug according to the Associated Press (AP), but as a state where recreational weed is still illegal, where does that leave Arkansas?
The reclassification proposal would both recognize the medical uses of cannabis and acknowledge it has less potential for abuse when compared to other drugs, according to AP sources, but it would not outright legalize recreational weed everywhere.
Essentially, the alleged proposal would move weed from a Schedule 1 drug, alongside LSD and heroin, to a Schedule 3 drug, alongside ketamine and anabolic steroids.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland approved the proposal, signaling its importance to the Biden administration.
It comes after President Joe Biden called for a review of federal marijuana law in October 2022 and moved to pardon thousands of Americans convicted for possessing weed.
“Criminal records for marijuana use and possession have imposed needless barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities,” Biden said in December. “Too many lives have been upended because of our failed approach to marijuana. It’s time that we right these wrongs.”
Some critics argue the DEA shouldn’t change course on marijuana, saying rescheduling isn’t necessary and could lead to harmful side effects.
Jack Riley, a former deputy administrator of the DEA, said he had concerns about the proposed change because he thinks marijuana remains a possible “gateway drug,” one that may lead to the use of other drugs.
Once it is signed off on, the proposal would be subject to public comment and reviewed by a judge, before being eventually published.
How Does This Impact Arkansans?
A spokesperson for Arkansans for Patient Access, Melissa Fults calls the proposal a great start, and a "huge game changer" for both patients and the industry.
Fults also points out that due to marijuana's current Schedule 1 designation, businesses that cultivate and sell it face significant hurdles when handling their financials.
"Because it's a Schedule 1 drug, they can't do any banking; everything has to go through cash," said Fults. "This way, they'll be allowed to accept debit cards, have deductions on their taxes and expenses, all of those things that most business owners can do."
On the other hand, the Executive Director of the Arkansas Family Council Jerry Cox raises worries that the reclassification may interfere with international drug control treaties, and expose children to advertisements for marijuana, a drug he labels as very harmful.
"If marijuana is rescheduled ... some people will tell you that it very likely opens the door for marijuana advertising," said Cox. "When that happens, what you're going to end up with is it sends a message to children that somehow marijuana must be okay ... I think it sends the wrong message to our kids."
Although President Biden pardoned many minor marijuana offenses in a 2022 proclamation, Fults confirms that "he can't expunge state records. I'm hoping that governors across the nation listen to what he's saying."
The Associated Press contributed to parts of this report, you can read their full article on their website here.
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