DEA Asks FDA To Consider Rescheduling Marijuana From Schedule I Drug [View all]

[Jesus Malverde]

In another sign that the 2014 is turning out to be a watershed year for marijuana drug reform, the federal Department of Drug Enforcement (DEA) has sent up the first of what undoubtedly will be the first of many white flags.

After a historic House vote to defund the DEA's operating budget for marijuana enforcement in the states earlier in the month passed (with a similar one now in the Senate), the government agency has now asked the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to consider removing marijuana from the list of Schedule I drugs as defined by the Controlled Substances Act.

This classification is, most reform advocates say, a major step forward to reform required at this juncture. It is, however, just the first step of many that still lie ahead for marijuana just on a legal and policy level to allow broader medical and continued encouragement for commercial development across the country.

"It is a good sign that the DEA is starting to walk back its policy of interfering with marijuana research and rescheduling," said Morgan Fox of the Marijuana Policy Project, a drug reform focused group. "Unfortunately, this is a very tiny step."

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