Pushback on cannabis rescheduling, while expected, has begun in full force.
A Republican-controlled congressional committee this week unveiled a key spending bill that would block rescheduling and modify longstanding protections for state medical cannabis programs.
The provisions were part of the 2025 appropriations bill for Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies, which made it out of a subcommittee markup, according to a Wednesday news release. It would prohibit the Department of Justice from using funds to reschedule or deschedule marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act.
The latest set of provisions hints at ongoing disagreements in Congress about cannabis policy.
The bill says: “None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to reschedule marijuana … or to remove marijuana from the schedules established under section 202 of the Controlled Substances Act.”
The bill keeps the existing rule that prevents the DOJ from interfering with state medical marijuana laws. However, it adds a new provision stating that DOJ funds can be used to enforce violations of 21 U.S.C. 860, which relates to penalties for distributing controlled substances near schools (within 1,000 feet) and other protected locations.
In other words, while the new rule doesn’t directly change the protection for state medical cannabis programs, it could give the federal government a way to take action in some situations, even in states with legal medical marijuana.
While the medical cannabis protection rider has been in place since 2014, this marks the first time such restrictive provisions have been included in the base CJS bill, according to Marijuana Moment.
The legislation also retains a separate rider preventing DOJ interference in state hemp research programs.
A separate House committee on Wednesday blocked all cannabis-related amendments to three major spending bills, preventing floor votes on several cannabis policy proposals, Marijuana Moment reported.
The House Rules Committee rejected amendments to 2025 appropriations legislation for the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, and Department of State.
Among the blocked proposals:
A measure to ban certain federal agencies from testing job applicants for cannabis in states where it’s legal.
An amendment to prevent military branches from removing servicemembers solely for past nonviolent cannabis offenses.
A provision to stop border agents from seizing cannabis from state-licensed businesses.
This follows the committee’s decision earlier this month to block a mix of cannabis amendments to a large defense bill, which kept language preventing military branches from testing recruits for the substance.
BILLS-118-SC-AP-FY2025-CJS-FY25CJSSubcommitteeMark