Federal cannabis policy has always been a mess. When I say “always”, I’m looking back 90 years or so, beginning with the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937, then skipping ahead to the Controlled Substances Act, the Rohrbacher-Farr Amendment, the 2014 Farm Bill, and the 2018 Farm Bill—not to mention the various awkward and occasionally incoherent
In the never-ending loop of federal marijuana reform debates, one crucial fact keeps getting overlooked: the Attorney General (AG) has the power to reschedule marijuana. Right now. No act of Congress. No HHS review. No rulemaking marathon. Just a signature. Under 21 U.S.C. § 811(d)(1), the AG can unilaterally reschedule marijuana to better align U.S.
In yet another setback for hemp and marijuana-adjacent businesses, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has quietly reintroduced a policy that effectively disqualifies most of them from critical federal loan programs. The updated policy, effective June 1, has far-reaching consequences for small businesses operating in compliance with state law (and for some, in compliance with
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that a pretty historic announcement was made last week by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). HHS officially recommended that marijuana be rescheduled from Schedule I to Schedule III of the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA). The HHS news means that the country’s top
Huge news yesterday. Huge! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has officially recommended that marijuana be rescheduled, from Schedule I to Schedule III of the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA). This means that the country’s top health agency has finally conceded that cannabis has medical value, and isn’t a drug of abuse
Over the last five years, I’ve done countless compliance reviews for cannabis product and CBD product labels, packaging materials, and products themselves. In all cases – not most, all – cannabis product labels needed at least one change. Product type, shape, and ingredients often needed work. And even packaging material has had plenty of issues.
Today’s public service announcement is that Congress wants to hear from you on a regulatory fix for cannabidiol (CBD) and other hemp-derived cannabinoid products. The request came down via the Energy and Commerce Committee on July 27, when it published a Request for Information (RFI) to “interested parties” on the topic. The deadline for RFI
It seems as if there is a new cannabinoid product coming out every five minutes. Scratch that – it seems like there is a new cannabinoid coming out every five minutes. After CBD, it was CBG and CBN, then the deltas, and then, well, it’s hard to keep track. Today, every time I research these new
The level of straight-up false information in cannabis advertising online is staggering. It’s almost too hard to describe. As a cannabis attorney, I’m often stunned that companies push cannabis advertisements the way they do. Over the years, I’ve spoken to dozens (maybe hundreds) of cannabis business owners who thought X was completely legal because of
On July 5, 2023, the FDA and FTC jointly announced six cease and desist letters to alleged delta-8 product makers. You can access the letters here. Unlike prior rounds of warning letters, these letters have a new focus: harm to children. For nearly five years, the FDA and FTC have taken the position that CBD
