President Joe Biden on Thursday officially announced that his administration took a "major step" to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous substance, a seismic shift in the country’s drug policy.

What You Need To Know

  • President Joe Biden officially announced Thursday that his administration took a "major step" to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous substance

  • The Justice Department submitted a notice to the Office of the Federal Register which proposes reclassifying marijuana from a Schedule I drug — on the level with heroin, LSD and ecstasy — to Schedule III — the same level as ketamine, anabolic steroids and products with less than 90 milligrams of codeine per dosage unit, such as acetaminophen with codeine

  • The announcement builds on Biden's previous efforts to enact marijuana reform, including pardoning all federal offenses of simple marijuana possession

  • The move builds on Biden's campaign promise to "decriminalize cannabis use and automatically expunge prior convictions," and could help boost his reelection bid, particularly among young voters

  • Thirty-eight states have already legalized medical marijuana, while another 24 have cleared it for recreational use

The Justice Department on Thursday submitted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to the Office of the Federal Register which proposes reclassifying marijuana from a Schedule I drug — on the level with heroin, LSD and ecstasy — to Schedule III — the same level as ketamine, anabolic steroids and products with less than 90 milligrams of codeine per dosage unit, such as acetaminophen with codeine — a senior administration official said.

Once the notice has been published, it faces a 60-day public comment period. After that, the DEA Administrator can assign an Administrative Law Judge to take on the case, considering evidence and making a final judgment. After that, the DOJ will make a final scheduling recommendation and publish it in the Federal Register.

Biden in 2022 directed federal agencies to review the classification of cannabis. In a video posted to social media on Thursday, Biden called it a "monumental" move and a "major step."

"It’s an important move towards reversing longstanding inequities," Biden says in the video. "Today’s announcement builds on the work we’ve already done to pardon a record number of federal offenses for simple possession of marijuana. And it adds to the action we’ve taken to lift barriers to housing, employment, small business loans and so much more for tens of thousands of Americans."

"No one should be in jail merely for using or possessing marijuana, period," the president continued. "Far too many lives have been upended because of a failed approach to marijuana, and I’m committed to righting those wrongs. You have my word on it."

The announcement builds on Biden's previous efforts to enact marijuana reform. In 2022, the president pardoned all federal offenses of simple marijuana possession, and the next year he announced clemency for more cannabis offenses, including use of marijuana, and urged state governors to do the same.

"We understand in the country that strong majorities of Americans think that we should not treat marijuana like we treat LSD or heroin," White House Domestic Policy Council Director Neera Tanden told Spectrum News in an interview on Thursday. "The President is committed as committed to changing that, righting those historic wrongs that we've seen. This is an important step forward."

As a candidate, Biden pledged that he would "decriminalize cannabis use and automatically expunge prior convictions." The move could help boost Biden's reelection bid, particularly among young voters.

Biden's reelection campaign sought to compare the president's policies on pot to his predecessor's stance on the issue.

"It’s simple, Joe Biden smokes sleepy Don on delivering for the American people," Biden-Harris 2024 Spokesperson James Singer said of former President Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee. "After four years of all talk, all failure from Donald Trump, Joe Biden is keeping his promise on marijuana policy, moving America forward, and making America safer. Donald Trump was wrong on marijuana policy and made America less safe, hurting  young people and communities of color. Voters can’t afford the broken promises and dangerous failures of a second Trump term.”

The move could also be a major boon to the country's fast-growing cannabis industry. Thirty-eight states have already legalized medical marijuana, with another 24 clearing cannabis for recreational use.

According to an analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data from LendingTree, cannabis tax revenue added up to $2.86 billion in 2023, with tax revenues in Missouri (a 355% increase) and New York (184.1%) more than doubling.

Democrats celebrated Biden's move, with some, like Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, urging him to do more.

"The DOJ is finally recognizing that draconian cannabis laws need to change to catch up to science and the majority of Americans. But it’s past time to legalize it," said Leader Schumer who pointed to the bill that he and Sens. Cory Booker and Ron Wyden introduced earlier this month which would do just that.

"The long wait is over and we thank President Biden and his administration for this major action on cannabis reform by moving marijuana from being in the same schedule as heroin to the schedule of codeine, acknowledging for the first time therapeutic use," said Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, adding: "This action from the President is pro-freedom, and forward-thinking, and will help our economy and improve public safety."

"It's ridiculous that marijuana has a higher-level classification than fentanyl and methamphetamine – the two drugs driving America's overdose epidemic," said Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass. "This move from the Biden administration is a step in the right direction."

When asked by Spectrum News about the possibility of further action on cannabis, Tanden emphasized that Biden "is doing everything he can," adding: "Decriminalization really is an issue for Congress. You need a statute change for decriminalization."

"President Biden has said that he supports ensuring that no one who's possessing marijuana should be put in jail," Tanden said, when asked if Biden would support Schumer's push for decriminalization of cannabis. "There's lots of bills around decriminalization, and we're looking, we always look at those bill, and, you know, we would see whatever Congress could pass."

"Fundamentally, what the president is saying is he's kept his promise, which is to really focus on people, on medical research, on making it much more accessible. And that's what this rule is."

Spectrum News' Maddie Gannon and David Mendez contributed to this report.