Historic federal cannabis rescheduling will properly recognize cannabis as medicine and will lead to greater research, medical applications and tax parity
MoCannTrade (Missouri Cannabis Trade Association) applauds today’s historic White House announcement that President Trump is directing the Department of Justice to reclassify cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA.) MoCannTrade submitted formal comments to the DEA in support of rescheduling on June 30, 2024. The state’s cannabis trade association supports rescheduling because it properly recognizes cannabis as medicine, it allows for greater research of marijuana, and because the punitive 280E tax code will no longer apply to cannabis businesses, it finally treats the industry like all other small businesses for tax purposes.
Since 1970, marijuana has been listed as a Schedule I drug along with heroin, LSD and ecstasy because the federal government previously determined that there were no currently accepted medical uses for cannabis. MoCannTrade Executive Director Andrew Mullins released the following statement regarding today’s White House announcement:
“Cannabis rescheduling is a long overdue federal policy shift, which will allow for much greater medical research and bring parity to licensed Missouri marijuana business by treating them like any other small businesses for tax purposes. MoCannTrade believes this momentous change in federal policy combined with Missouri’s common-sense approach to cannabis legalization and expunging past, nonviolent cannabis offenses set Missouri up for decades of future success. This level of recognition for cannabis as medicine along with a renewed focus on the medical uses of marijuana and CBD is a huge win for physicians, patients and consumers in the US. Federal rescheduling of cannabis removes barriers and creates opportunity for the 40 US states, including Missouri, that have legalized medical and/or adult use cannabis; and no other state in the country is as well positioned as Missouri to take advantage of this reform, while continuing to bring our customers 100% Missouri-grown plant medicine in a safe, compliant way.”
According to the White House, Schedule III status will “allow research studies to incorporate real-world evidence and models that can assess the health outcomes of medical marijuana and legal CBD products while focusing on long-term health effects in vulnerable populations like adolescents and young adults.”
This spring the Wall Street Journal profiled the Missouri cannabis industry as one of the most successful in the entire country in an article titled How Missouri Became a Cannabis Mecca. Since Missouri’s first legal medical marijuana sale in Oct. 2020 to Larry, a cancer survivor, and his wife Sue, an RN, Missouri has surpassed $4.5 billion in total cannabis sales. In 2024 alone, the Missouri cannabis industry generated $244.93 million in sales tax revenue for state and local governments.
A link to MoCannTrade’s June 2024 formal DEA comments on cannabis rescheduling can be found here: https://netorgft3806431-
MoCannTrade (The Missouri Cannabis Trade Association) is an association of business owners, professionals, patients and consumers responsible for helping to implement successful, safe, compliant medical and adult use cannabis programs in Missouri.
The membership-based association is directed by a board of diverse professionals experienced in cannabis production and retail, healthcare, law, pharma, science, agriculture, law enforcement and security, finance, public affairs and regulatory sectors.
To learn more about MoCannTrade please visit www.mocanntrade.org
