As the Biden administration works to conduct a review into the marijuana’s federal scheduling, a bipartisan coalition of congressional lawmakers is asking the president to officially get on board with outright legalization. In a letter obtained by Marijuana Moment on Friday that’s expected to be sent to President Joe Biden and top cabinet officials next […]| Marijuana Moment
The White House and key officials touted policies and accomplishments of the Biden administration—including marijuana pardons, drug sentencing reform, harm reduction and enhanced drug war enforcement for fentanyl—ahead of the president’s State of the Union address on Tuesday. President Joe Biden did not end up explicitly discussing cannabis when he appeared before the joint session […]| Marijuana Moment
A top Food and Drug Administration (FDA) official said on Thursday that the agency is exploring “what flexibilities we might have” when it comes the federal government’s marijuana scheduling review directed by President Joe Biden, which she described as a “very high priority.” But she said that while FDA will lead the scientific and medical […]| Marijuana Moment
“The president was very clear—he wants this done as quickly as possible.” By Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra said in Tampa Friday that he intends for his agency to move “as quickly as we can” to comply with President Joe Biden’s directive to review the decades-old policy […]| Marijuana Moment
A bipartisan group of 29 congressional lawmakers from both the House and Senate sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Thursday, asking that he formally back federal marijuana legalization as the administration carries out a review of cannabis scheduling at his direction. The letter, the text of which was obtained by Marijuana Moment last […]| Marijuana Moment
The Biden administration’s top health official on Monday tweeted a link to a Marijuana Moment article that discusses the president’s recent administrative cannabis scheduling directive. U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra posted the link at precisely 4:20pm ET—the second time during his tenure that he shared marijuana policy news at that symbolic […]| Marijuana Moment
President Joe Biden’s surprise marijuana pardon action last week has been widely praised as an important step toward righting the wrongs of prohibition. But advocates have also been quick to point out that the move is seriously limited in scope and will leave many victims of the war on cannabis behind, without relief. People prosecuted […]| Marijuana Moment
U.S. Pardon Attorney Elizabeth Oyer said on Tuesday that the Justice Department will soon give people the opportunity obtain certificates for presidential marijuana pardons through a soon-to-be-launched application process that they expect will only take 10 minutes to complete. The official also weighed in on the fact that the President Joe Biden’s mass pardon excluded […]| Marijuana Moment
A Democratic congressman is circulating a sign-on letter challenging Biden Administration officials who are currently engaged in a review of marijuana’s scheduling status under the federal Controlled Substances Act to provide clear and compelling reasons for whatever decisions they reach. “To ensure accountability in your conclusions—which has been absent in so much of the history […]| Marijuana Moment
Speaking at an event commemorating the end of Black History Month on Monday, President Joe Biden again touted his move to pardon people for marijuana—highlighting the racially disparate impact of cannabis enforcement. “Another thing about equal justice. I’m keeping my promise: No one should be in prison for the mere possession of marijuana,” the president […]| Marijuana Moment
President Joe Biden issued an executive order on Thursday that touts the administration’s efforts to address the “failed approach” on federal marijuana policy. The executive order doesn’t specifically build on any administrative cannabis reforms; rather it’s focused on promoting equity within federal agencies and the White House. But the president took the opportunity to connect […]| Marijuana Moment
President Joe Biden granted a half dozen pardons on Friday, including for a handful of people with marijuana or other drug convictions on their records. The end-of-year clemency action follows the mass pardon for Americans who’ve committed federal cannabis possession offenses that the president issued in October. Advocates would welcome any form of presidential relief—and […]| Marijuana Moment
Congressional researchers released a report on Wednesday that provides a point-by-point overview of the limitations of President Joe Biden’s mass marijuana pardon, as well as broader analysis on recent state and federal cannabis reform actions. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) described the “two key developments in federal and state marijuana regulation” that have taken place […]| Marijuana Moment
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said on Wednesday that the Department of Justice is “still working on a marijuana policy” and that federal health officials are currently taking the lead on a broader ongoing review of cannabis’s federal scheduling status that was directed by President Joe Biden. “I think that it’s fair to expect what […]| Marijuana Moment