Cannabis in the United States

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Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 $1 marijuana revenue stamp, 1937 issue
US cannabis arrests by year[1][2][3][4]

The use, sale, and possession of cannabis containing over 0.3% THC by dry weight in the United States, despite laws in many states permitting it under various circumstances, is illegal under federal law.[5] As a Schedule I drug under the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970, cannabis containing over 0.3% THC by dry weight (legal term marijuana) is considered to have "no accepted medical use" and a high potential for abuse and physical or psychological dependence.[6] Cannabis use is illegal for any reason, with the exception of FDA-approved research programs.[7] However, individual states have enacted legislation permitting exemptions for various uses, including medical, industrial, and recreational use.[8][9]

Cannabis for industrial uses (hemp) was made illegal to grow without a permit under the CSA because of its relation to cannabis as a drug, and any imported products must adhere to a zero tolerance policy.[10][11] The Agricultural Act of 2014 allows for universities and state-level departments of agriculture to cultivate cannabis for research into its industrial potential.[12] In December 2018, hemp was permitted to be grown in the U.S. under federal law after the Hemp Farming Act was included in the passed 2018 Farm Bill.[13]

As a psychoactive drug, cannabis continues to find extensive favor among recreational and medical users in the U.S.[14][15] As of 2023, twenty-four states, three U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational use of cannabis. Thirty-eight states, four U.S. territories, and D.C. have legalized medical use of the drug. Multiple efforts to reschedule cannabis under the CSA have failed, and the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in United States v. Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative (2001) and Gonzales v. Raich (2005) that the federal government has a right to regulate and criminalize cannabis, whether medical or recreational. As a result, cannabis dispensaries are licensed by each state;[16] these businesses sell cannabis products that have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration,[17] nor are they legally registered with the federal government to sell controlled substances.[18] Although cannabis has not been approved, the FDA recognizes the potential benefits and has approved two drugs that contain components of marijuana.[19]

The ability of states to implement cannabis legalization policies was weakened after U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded the Cole Memorandum on January 4, 2018, and issued a new memo instructing U.S. attorneys to enforce federal law related to marijuana.[20] The Cole memo, issued by former Deputy Attorney General James Cole in 2013, urged federal prosecutors to refrain from targeting state-legal marijuana operations.[21] Regarding the medical use of cannabis, the Rohrabacher–Farr amendment still remains in effect to protect state-legal medical cannabis activities from enforcement of federal law.[22][23] On May 1, 2024, the Associated Press reported on federal plans to change marijuana to a Schedule III drug.[24]

  1. ^ Total Annual Arrests in the US by Year and Type of Offense Archived April 26, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. Drug War Facts. Page lists FBI Uniform Crime Reports sources. Page links to data table Archived December 7, 2020, at the Wayback Machine:
  2. ^ Data table: Total Number of Arrests in the US by Year and Type of Offense Archived December 7, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. Drug War Facts.
  3. ^ Drugs and Crime Facts: Drug law violations and enforcement Archived December 25, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. From the United States Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reports. Click on the charts to view the data.
  4. ^ Marijuana Research: Uniform Crime Reports - Marijuana Arrest Statistics Archived December 21, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. Has data table for earlier years. Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reports.
  5. ^ Clarke, Robert; Merlin, Mark (2013). Cannabis: Evolution and Ethnobotany. University of California Press. p. 185. ISBN 978-0-520-95457-1. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
  6. ^ DEA (2013). "The DEA Position on Marijuana" (PDF). Dea.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 21, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
  7. ^ McKinsey, John A.; Burke, Debra (2014). Carper's Understanding the Law. Cengage Learning. p. 216. ISBN 978-1-305-17730-7.
  8. ^ "State Industrial Hemp Statutes". National Conference of State Legislatures. April 18, 2018. Archived from the original on December 20, 2020. Retrieved July 5, 2018.
  9. ^ "State Medical Marijuana Laws". National Conference of State Legislatures. June 27, 2018. Archived from the original on May 29, 2019. Retrieved July 5, 2018.
  10. ^ Frank J. House (2006). Agricultural Programs, Terms and Laws. Nova Publishers. p. 146. ISBN 978-1-59454-892-5. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
  11. ^ White, Rob (2013). Global Environmental Harm: Criminological Perspectives. University of Tasmania. p. 185. ISBN 978-1-134-03031-6. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
  12. ^ Jonathan P. Caulkins; Beau Kilmer; Mark A.R. Kleiman (2016). Marijuana Legalization: What Everyone Needs to Know?. Oxford University Press. p. 25. ISBN 978-0-19-026243-3. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
  13. ^ Dyer, Owen (May 31, 2018). "Trump signs bill to give patients right to try drugs". BMJ. 361: k2429. doi:10.1136/bmj.k2429. ISSN 0959-8138. PMID 29853541. S2CID 46918623.
  14. ^ Lowinson, Joyce H. (2005). Substance Abuse: A Comprehensive Textbook. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. p. 274. ISBN 978-0-7817-3474-5. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
  15. ^ "Recreational Cannabis in US". Archived from the original on April 25, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  16. ^ David Neubauer; Stephen Meinhold (2013). Judicial Process: Law, Courts, and Politics in the United States. Cengage Learning. p. 108. ISBN 978-1-133-71178-0. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
  17. ^ "Public Health Focus > FDA and Marijuana: Questions and Answers". Fda.gov. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
  18. ^ Brian F Thomas; Mahmoud ElSohly (2015). The Analytical Chemistry of Cannabis: Quality Assessment, Assurance, and Regulation of Medicinal Marijuana and Cannabinoid Preparations. Elsevier Science. p. 83. ISBN 978-0-12-804670-8. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
  19. ^ Office of the Commissioner. "Public Health Focus - FDA and Marijuana". www.FDA.gov. Archived from the original on December 4, 2020. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
  20. ^ Zapotosky, Matt; Horwitz, Sari; Achenbach, Joel (January 4, 2018). "Use of legalized marijuana threatened as Sessions rescinds Obama-era directive that eased federal enforcement". Washington Post. Archived from the original on April 5, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  21. ^ Reilly, Ryan J.; Wing, Nick (January 4, 2018). "Jeff Sessions Unleashes Federal Prosecutors On Legal Marijuana". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on February 11, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  22. ^ Lopez, German (May 30, 2014). "House protects marijuana patients from feds". Vox. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  23. ^ Sullum, Jacob (January 4, 2016). "The Federal Ban on Medical Marijuana Was Not Lifted". Reason.com. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  24. ^ Miller, Zeke; Goodman, Joshua; Mustian, Jim; Whitehurst, Lindsay (May 1, 2024). "US poised to ease restrictions on marijuana in historic shift, but it'll remain controlled substance". Associated Press. Retrieved May 1, 2024.