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CannaBeat: State GOP Wants to Control What You Can Buy and Where

Photo: Toby Sells

Republican lawmakers are coming for your cannabis products, again. 

Two new bills filed for the upcoming session of the Tennessee General Assembly outright ban the sale of THCA products. One of those would remove all cannabis products from gas stations (or any store that allows those under 21) and more. However, another bill, also filed by Republicans, would outright legalize all “smoking hemp.”

The Tennessee Growers Coalition, an industry advocacy group, raised the alarm on the bills. They say the bill put “a direct target on the industry.” 

“There are several bills that have been introduced this week that will directly affect the industry, and not in a good way,” reads a newsletter the group sent Friday. 

A bill sponsored by state Sen. Ferrell Haile (R-Gallatin) and state Rep. Ed Butler (R-Rickman), says hemp is legal only as long as it contains the state-limited .3 percent total THC. However, it further specifies that legal hemp here would still need to meet that amount after it is heated (y’know, smoked). Further, the bill outlaws all THCP and THCA products.

Another bill, filed my House Majority Leader Rep. William Lamberth (R-Portland) and Sen. Richard Briggs (R-Knoxville) includes the THCA ban but also completely reorganizes how hemp products are sold in Tennessee. Lamberth has worked on cannabis issues for years now and is largely responsible for the market as it is now. 

That market is overseen by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture. However, the new bill would move that oversight to the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission. 

The new bill would remove all hemp-derived cannabis products from any store that allows customers under age 21. In those stores, hemp products must be kept behind counters or some other place “that requires assistance from a retail clerk in order to access and purchase” the products. Liquor stores, however, could keep hemp beverages (12 ounces or greater) in coolers for customers to access themselves.  

Hemp products could be sold in vending machines, self-checkout systems, or online. Giving samples would be illegal. 

Products can only contain a maximum of 250 milligrams of hemp in 10 equal servings.  Those products would come with a list of possible allergens, ingredients, and total hemp volume. They’d also come with a  “conspicuous warning statement having a minimum font size of 11-point font concerning the risk of impairment from consumption of the product, keeping the product out of the reach of children, and other warning information.” 

Advertising for hemp products cannot feature “superheroes, comic book characters, video game characters, television show characters, movie characters, or unicorns or other mythical creatures.” Sorry, Bigfoot. 

Hemp products could not be mixed with alcoholic beverages or used as an ingredient in beer. Retailers cannot make claims “pertaining to diagnoses, cures, or mitigation or treatment of any human disease or other condition.” 

Another bill, filed by Rep. Chris Hurt (R-Halls) and Sen. Page Walley (R-Savannah) simply (but officially) adds “smoking hemp,” meaning dried cannabis flower, to state law. 

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CannaBeat: State Bills Would Allow Recreational, Medical Cannabis

Photo: Toby Sells

Cannabis would be legal for recreational and medical uses in Tennessee next year if the Tennessee General Assembly passes either of two similar bills filed by Democrats this week. 

One bill is called the Tennessee Cannabis Act. The other is called the Pot for Potholes Act. 

The first is from state Rep. Larry Miller (D-Memphis) and state Sen. Jeff Yarbro (D-Nashville). The second is from state Rep. Aftyn Behn (D-Nashville) and state Sen. Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville).  

Both bills allow all Tennessee adults over 21 to possess, use, and transport small amounts of cannabis for personal use. Both would allow cannabis retailers to sell all THC products. They would also allow Tennesseans to grow up to 12 cannabis plants for personal use. 

Both bills would tax cannabis sales at 15 percent on the state level and allow local governments to add a 5 percent tax to local sales of cannabis. State budget experts have not yet estimated how much revenue those tax figures might bring.  

A bill filed last year would have established a medical marijuana program in the state. Tennesseans would have been only eligible to buy cannabis products if they had a diagnosis from a specific list of medical conditions. That law would have made the total state marijuana tax 10 percent and a local tax up to 3 percent. State budget experts predicted that plan would have yielded tax revenues of more than $48 million annually.    

The new cannabis plans differ in how revenues are spent. The broader Tennessee Cannabis Act specifies only that about 15 percent of the money go to state agencies to run the cannabis program. The rest would go into he state’s general fund and spent at the discretion of lawmakers. 

The Pot for Potholes fund earmarks 75 percent of all cannabis tax revenues for the state highway fund. Most of the rest of the money would go to Tennessee’s 95 counties. A remaining 5 percent of the funds would go to state agencies to manage the program.

The bills seem the same in almost every other way. Both would: 

• Regulate cannabis packaging. Products for sale would have to be sold in child-resistant packaging, carry a new, universal cannabis symbol, and show the total amount of THC in the product. 

• Cap personal possession at 60 grams of marijuana, but not more than 15 grams of concentrate 

• Allow private cultivation of 12 plants in a private area that is locked and not visible from a public place.

• Allow a parent or guardian to give cannabis products to their children for a medical condition, excluding smokeable products. 

 • Allow for the commercial grow and sale of the product. 

• Allow for the possession of marijuana-related paraphernalia such as water pipes, etc. (with exceptions) 

• Allow employers to prohibit the use of cannabis products in the workplace. 

• Allow employers to discipline workers for cannabis use.

• Allow employers to consider cannabis use in its hiring process (with certain restrictions).

• Allow personal cannabis users and growers to buy firearms. 

• Cannabis possession or use would not be grounds to deny a lease to a potential residential tenant.

• Cannabis use would not be allowed in a motor vehicle, a watercraft on public waters, or in a public place.      

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CannaBeat: State Sued for Rule Change on Smokeables

CBD and Delta-8 products on a shelf at Cumberland Cannabis (Photo: John Partipilo)

Tennessee’s hemp industry is making a last-ditch legal effort to halt sweeping new rules that would ban the sale of popular hemp products legally available in the state since 2019.

Attorneys representing Tennessee hemp retailers and producer associations are expected in a Nashville court Monday just ahead of new state product testing rules scheduled to take effect Dec. 26.

The rules would bar the manufacture, distribution and sale of many of the best-selling hemp products that have helped drive a nascent state industry to generate $280-$560 million in sales annually, based on survey data cited in legal documents.

The hemp products haven’t been outlawed by the Tennessee legislature or the federal government.

TN Agriculture officials want to curb CBD and THCA smokables, offer cryptic response to questions

Rather, new legislation designed to impose first-time regulations on Tennessee’s five-year-old hemp industry –—such as license requirements, taxes, and age restrictions — have been interpreted by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture in a way that would render certain hemp products illegal.

The rules require products to be tested for the first time for so-called TCHA content, a naturally occurring and still-legal substance found in all hemp plants. When hemp flowers are heated or smoked, the substance converts to THC — an illegal substance in Tennessee when it is present in greater than trace amounts.

The Tennessee Growers Association and the Tennessee Healthy Alternatives Association are seeking a temporary injunction they say is necessary to prevent widespread devastation to the burgeoning industry.

Should the new rules go into effect, “a large share of Tennessee’s hemp-derived cannabinoid market will be rendered illegal overnight, shuttering many businesses and forcing downsizing and layoffs at others,” legal filings by the Tennessee Healthy Alternatives Association read.

Hemp is a cannabis plant that has been legally available in Tennessee since the Legislature first approved its production, possession, and sale in 2019.

It’s distinguished from marijuana by its concentration of a compound known as delta-9 THC. Cannabis with a concentration of less than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC is defined as legal hemp in Tennessee — and federally. Cannabis with concentrations greater than .3 percent is classified as marijuana and is illegal to grow, sell, or possess in Tennessee.

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Hemp flowers also contain THCA, a nonintoxicating acid that has not been outlawed in Tennessee. When heated or smoked, however, the THCA in the plant converts into delta-9 THC.

The state product testing rules unveiled by Tennessee’s agriculture department earlier this year will now make THCA products illegal based on their combined concentration of delta-9 THC and THCA, rather than solely their delta-9 THC concentration.

A spokesperson for the Department of Agriculture, which rejected hemp industry administrative appeals of the rules, declined to comment Tuesday on pending legislation.

Both industry groups argue the state’s agriculture department exceeded its authority in formulating the rules, essentially outlawing a product the legislature has determined to be legal.

“Here, it blinks reality to conclude that the General Assembly — in the very statute that expressly defines (THCA) as a legal hemp-derived cannabinoid without any concentration limits — delegated to the Department a clandestine power to outlaw (THCA) products that have been legally sold in Tennessee for years,” legal filings said.

The Tennessee Growers Association has also put forth a separate legal argument that the 2023 law intended to regulate “hemp-derived products” does apply to the unadulterated hemp plant itself.

“Hemp and raw flowers are not HDC’s (hemp derivative products),” the Tennessee Growers Coalition argued. “After all, hemp cannot be ‘derived’ from itself.”

The groups are seeking an immediate preliminary injunction in Davidson County Chancery Court to prevent the rules from taking effect.

Tennessee Lookout is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Tennessee Lookout maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Holly McCall for questions: info@tennesseelookout.com.

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Hemp Flower Set to Disappear from Stores Next Month

Esteban López on Unsplash

Hemp flower is still set to disappear from store shelves on December 26th after state lawmakers left a new rule in place this week, one that cannabis industry leaders say could decimate their businesses.

Cannabis farmers and retailers already adhere to a state law that limits products to a maximum of .3 percent THC. The new rule, set not by lawmakers but the Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDOA), includes new testing for THCA levels, which can rise in products on store shelves or after purchase by being heated. 

The new rule would stop the sale of smokeable hemp flower, those recognizable green nuggets that can be crushed, rolled in a joint, or lit in the bowl of a bong. Pushback on the sale of hemp flowers comes largely from GOP members of the Tennessee General Assembly. Their objection being, basically, that smoking dry flower can get users high from legal products.

 On his way to Wednesday’s joint House and Senate hearing on the TDOA’s new cannabis rules, Soddy Daisy cannabis farmer and Farm to Med retail owner Chris Sumrell, said he passed two groups of people smoking cannabis. Public consumption is a problem, he said, even noting that if “someone that looked like me [with long hair and a beard]” was smoking cannabis next to his family in a park, he’d move away from them. But lawmakers should not take the product away form retailers.

“What do people do with the flower? They smoke it,” Sumrell testified. “We can’t stop them from doing that. If we take this off the counter, and don’t regulate it, and tax it, they’re gonna go to the black market or take their business across state lines.” 

Sumrell’s testimony on his cannabis use was one of the clearest public delineations between smokeable products and edibles given to state lawmakers in years of debate. The new rules would test products at or after the moment of decarboxylation. This process, usually done with heat, converts THCA into THC, releases psychoactive compounds, and gets users high. 

Here’s how Sumrell described the nitty-gritty: 

”Anybody that uses cannabis will tell you that eating cannabis and smoking cannabis are two completely different things. I don’t eat it at all. I don’t like it because that’s the Delta 9. That’s the psychoactive narcotic. The walls can melt if you take on too much of that stuff, okay? 

“But smoking it, it’s a different property altogether. That’s combustion, not decarboxylation. 

“So, that’s where the wall is very confusing because say we’re talking about decarboxylation to somebody that’s a scientist. They’re gonna say, ‘well, they’re talking about cooking with it.’ No, they’re talking about using this to take the [hemp flower] off of the table. Well, that’s combusting it. That’s a different chemical process. This is science. 

“THCA flower does not turn into a psychoactive narcotic until you cook with it through decarboxylation. Decarboxylation’s prime temperature is 200 to 250 degrees, but starts at 98 degrees. So, just leaving that flower in the window can turn it to Delta 9. But if I’m striking a lighter to it, that’s combusting it into a [non-psychoactive] CBN and not a Delta 9.”

House Speaker Rep. William Lamberth (R-Portland) sponsored the overarching cannabis regulation bill two years ago. He worked closely with farmers, retailers, and government officials in drafting the bill. The bill put cannabis products behind many store shelves, and issued labeling requirements and THC limits. It also gave control of the state’s cannabis program to the TDOA, which added the rule that would ban THCA flower. 

On Wednesday, Lamberth pushed to keep the department’s rule in place for now so businesses could still operate. But he said he anticipated legislation on the matter in next year’s legislative session, which, perhaps, left the door open to smokeable products in the future. 

Jeff Sullivan, a former Memphian, and now vice president of sales with Chattanooga-based Snapdragon Hemp, pushed the debate from science, intoxication, and governance to straight economics. 

“Chris [Sumrell] will lose his farm,” Sullivan said. “Chris will lose his retail industry along with many, many other companies in Tennessee if their particular rules stay in place. It eliminates that much of their total business, their bottom line.”

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CannaBeat: Buds & Brews Sets Open Date for Broad Location

Credit: Buds & Brews

Buds & Brews, Tennessee’s first cannabis bar and restaurant concept, will open in Memphis next month. 

The restaurant was created and is owned by Nashville-based Craft Cannabis, a Tennessee seed-to-shelf cannabis company. The company’s new Memphis location is slated to open on Friday, Dec. 13th, in the former Bounty on Broad space in the Broad Avenue Arts District. 

“We are excited to bring the Buds & Brews experience to this dynamic arts community,” said Michael Solomon, owner and president of Craft Cannabis. “Along with a curated list of craft cocktails and beers on tap, we’re excited to offer our very own brand of THC-infused beverages and New Highs cannabis cocktails. 

“We’ve partnered with a brewery in Chattanooga to create these top-shelf quality cannabis beverages and have collaborated with some of the very best in the food and beverage industry in Memphis to bring a truly unique culinary adventure to this community.”

Credit: Buds & Brews
Credit: Buds & Brews

The first Buds & Brews opened in Nashville in 2022. It offers patrons the opportunity to “enjoy cannabis in a safe, legal, and fun environment” with upscale bar food like burgers, wings, and “Wake & Bake Brunch.” Diners can choose their favorite condiment sauces infused with Tennessee grown and extracted hemp-derived THC. The menu also features dessert edibles. 

For more information, click here. 

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Study: Tennessee Ranks Near the Top for Cannabis Arrests

Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash
The Last Prisoner Project

Tennessee is near the top for arresting people for cannabis and near the bottom for cannabis justice. 

Those are the conclusions from Denver-based The Last Prisoner Project (LPP). The group is “dedicated to releasing every last cannabis prisoner and helping them rebuild their lives.” It works on drug policy and criminal justice reform to “redress the harms of the federal government’s so-called ‘War on Drugs.’”

The group said 14,426 people were arrested for cannabis in Tennessee in 2022, using the latest available data. The figure gives the state an arrest rate of .2 percent per the population. Cannabis arrests comprised 39 percent of all drug arrests in the state that year. 

The Last Prisoner Project

This puts Tennessee near the top in two of these rankings. Only Texas arrested more people for cannabis that year (24,941). (But given that state’s huge population, the arrests rate was only .08 percent of its population.) Only Wisconsin had a higher arrest rate for cannabis (.22 percent). In Louisiana, 60 percent — more than half — of all drug arrests were for cannabis.   

But LPP admits that any real figure to determine exactly how many people are locked up on cannabis charges will be “an educated guess” at best. 

The Last Prisoner Project

“Unfortunately, thanks to our complex and oftentimes impenetrable hodgepodge of local, state, and federal criminal justice databases nobody — not even the federal government — is privy to that exact number,” reads a blog post from the group. 

However, the group’s figures (and Tennessee’s cannabis arrest rates) aren’t plucked form the air. LPP relied on two separate Bureau of Justice Statistics reports reviewing incarcerated populations by drug-specific offenses. That is, the report counted all those behind bars for drugs and what drugs brought them there. 

But the figure has to be low. Those reports don’t count those in local and county jails, juvenile detention facilities, and those held for pre-trial and pre-sentencing. Also, some facilities just don’t report to the feds like they should. 

“Nearly 40 percent of law enforcement agencies around the country did not submit any data in 2021 to a newly revised FBI crime statistics collection program,” according to a study from The Marshall Project. Neither New York City nor Los Angeles reported to the FBI that year, for example. 

The Last Prisoner Project

But the LPP can measure how well states help those previously incarcerated to find justice in the wake of either cannabis legalization or service of their time. 

Don’t worry. Tennessee does terrible there, too. Its June report gave Tennessee a D- after earning 3 points. (California earned 25 points for scale.) 

The Last Prisoner Project

“With no full legalization, no pardon policy, no avenues for resentencing, and extremely limited avenues for record clearance, Tennessee falls behind and offers virtually no relief for individuals impacted by past cannabis prohibition,” reads the report.     

The Last Prisoner Project

The LPP gave Tennessee two points for a law passed in 2022 that allowed for some criminal records to be expunged. However, it wasn’t written specifically for cannabis and the LPP said, “this unfortunately means that cannabis offense are not expedited nor guaranteed.” 

The state’s other point in the report came as the law does include broad eligibility for different levels of offenses. Tennessee scored points only in two of the report’s 16 categories. 

Don’t worry. Mississippi and Arkansas scored a D-, too. However, both states got an extra point over Tennessee for having some sort of legalization and/or decriminalization process. Tennessee has neither. 

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CannaBeat: Cannabis Group Follows Through on Promise to Sue State

Credit: Budding on Unsplash

As promised, the Tennessee Growers Coalition (TGC), the state’s advocate for the cannabis industry, sued the state over new rules it says are “void” and threaten the industry. 

State lawmakers passed new laws last year to regulate the burgeoning cannabis industry in Tennessee. Among many other things, the new law made the Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) responsible for regulating the cannabis industry in the state. Late last year, the department issued a draft of new rules for cannabis producers and products. 

The department updated those rules in July after a public comment period. However, TGC said state officials did not include ideas from the nearly 19,000 public comments in the new rules.

Instead of blending those ideas into a set of final rules, the TGC said agriculture officials issued emergency rules. The timing and procedure of issuing these new rules form the basis of the cannabis industry’s lawsuit filed Friday. The process, TGC said, “imposed an immediate and irreparable threat of harm” to the businesses of its members.

“TGC members’ businesses and livelihoods are at stake by being forced to adapt their business practices to regulations, change the type of products they sell, and how they manage compliance while paying a license fee under regulations that are void as a matter of law,” reads a statement from the group. “The (TDA) has nothing to lose while TGC Members risk losing everything.”

The new rules still include new THC standards for THCA and CBD flowers. New limits could see those products removed completely. The new rules would also allow police to arrest manufacturers, retailers, and consumers for selling or possessing these smokable products, according to Cultivate Tennessee, another hemp advocacy group.

The new state rules redefine THC to include a product’s total THC. This includes a lot of THCA — the cannabinoid that produces a “high” — smokeable products.

“They’re trying to redefine it by combining two different cannabinoids,” TGC executive director Kelley Mathis Hess told us last month, “two different things, when it should just be Delta 9, and Delta 9 only. They’re trying to put a limit on [THCA] but the limit would, basically, ban a lot of it.” 

Hess said these products are probably the most popular products on the market right now. Many small businesses have built their business around sales of these products, she said. Removing them could prove fatal to them. 

TGC promised to fight the rules in court last month. A court date for the lawsuit has been set for next Thursday, September 19th. 

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CannaBeat: “Legal High” Products Still at Risk in Tennessee

Photo: Budding | Unsplash

Smokeable THCA and CBD products are wildly popular in Tennessee, according to industry advocates, but they remain at risk of disappearing from store shelves under new state rules. 

State lawmakers passed new laws last year to regulate the growing cannabis industry in Tennessee. For example, cannabis products were moved behind shelves of stores that aren’t 21 and up. A new 6-percent tax on cannabis products was levied, too. A single serving of a cannabis product cannot exceed a dosage of 25 milligrams in the state.

The new law also made the Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) responsible for regulating the cannabis industry here. Late last year, the department issued new rules for cannabis producers and products. 

The department updated those rules at the beginning of this month after a public comment period. Tennessee Growers Coalition (TGC) executive director Kelley Mathis Hess said nearly 19,000 comments were submitted to the agency. But officials must not have listened, she said.

The new rules still include new THC standards for THCA and CBD flower. New limits could see those products removed completely. The new rules would also allow police to arrest manufacturers, retailers, and consumers for selling or possessing these smokable products, according to Cultivate Tennessee, another hemp advocacy group.

The new state rules redefine THC to include a product’s total THC. This includes a lot of THCA — the cannabinoid that produces a “high” — smokeable products.

“They’re trying to redefine it by combining two different cannabinoids,” Hess said, “two different things when it should just be Delta 9, and Delta 9 only. They’re trying to put a limit on [THCA] but the limit would, basically, ban a lot of it.” 

Hess said these products are probably the most popular products on the market right now. Many small businesses have built their business around sales of these products, she said. Removing them could prove fatal to them. 

TGC and Cultivate Tennessee have promised to fight. 

“We will fight to keep smokable hemp products, such as THCA flower, concentrates, and vapes legal in Tennessee,” Cultivate Tennessee says on its website. “We will defend against the TDA attempting to rewrite laws through the rules. We assert that the TDA rules are potentially illegal and unconstitutional.”

The new rules, though, are considered “emergency rules,” meaning they are not the final rules. So, they’re not set in stone. Hess said she hopes agency officials will reconsider the new rules for cannabis flower. If they don’t, TGC will file a lawsuit for legal clarification, she said.

These particular products were likely targeted by the agency, Hess said, for one big open secret.

 “These products get you high,” she said. “That’s not a secret anymore. That’s the whole reason [Rep. William Lamberth (R-Portland)] and [Sen. Richard Briggs (R-Knoxville)] brought a bill, because it gets you high and they wanted it regulated.”  

The new rules won’t affect edible products, like gummies, Hess said. Those products are made with cannabis oils that can be measured, fine-tuned all along the production process, and remain stable on the shelf. Cannabinoid profiles in flower products, however, can change. 

No state official has made any public comment on the new rules. However, when the Biden administration announced new rules not approved by Congress in a different matter, Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti led a multi-state revolt against them (and temporarily won). The U.S. Department of Education added “gender identity” to Title IX. Skrmetti said only Congress could change rules and that the government agency “has no authority to let boys into girls’ locker rooms.”  

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CannaBeat: Cannabis Restaurant Headed for Broad Avenue

Credit: Buds & Brews

Tennessee’s first brick-and-mortar cannabis bar is slated to land in Memphis soon.

The former Bounty on Broad space will soon become a Buds & Brews location. No timeline for the opening was given in a news release.

Nashville-based Buds & Brews opened its first restaurant and bar in that city’s Germantown neighborhood in 2022. It will open a second location in East Nashville later this month. 

The restaurant allows patrons to “enjoy cannabis in a safe, legal and fun environment,” the company said in a statement. It offers a unique menu of upscale bar fare like the Buds Burger, hot chicken tacos and a Wake and Bake Brunch.  

Credit: Buds & Brews

“We are excited to bring the Buds & Brews experience to Memphis,” said Michael Solomon, owner and president of Craft Cannabis, the restaurant’s parent company. “This dynamic arts community is the perfect location for a new and innovative restaurant and bar concept.  

“We are proud to collaborate with some of the best in the food and beverage industry in order to bring Tennesseans a truly unique culinary adventure.”

Craft Cannabis is an umbrella group for three brands. Craft Cannabis offers seed-to-shelf cannabis flower grown in Nashville. That brand also offers an array of edibles like cannabis cookies, gummies, and suckers. Tri-Star Medical offers cannabis tinctures, capsules, and topicals. Sticky Tomato has a full line of gummies. 

At Buds & Brews, diners can choose their favorite condiment sauces infused with Tennessee-grown-and-extracted hemp-derived THC. The restaurant will also have a craft cocktail menu, cannabis-infused cocktails like the Smoky Margarita and Spliff Sangria, beers on tap, their own brand of THC-infused beers and New Highs seltzers, and dessert edibles.  

Bar Leafy Green was slated to become Memphis’ first cannabis restaurant. Owners announced the plan on social media in 2022. It is unclear, however, whether the restaurant ever opened.

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CannaBeat: Feds Move On Cannabis; Could Loosen Laws in Tennessee

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The White House will remove cannabis from the federal list of the country’s most dangerous drugs, according to the Associated Press, a move that could lead to looser laws in Tennessee.

In 2022, President Joe Biden promised to reevaluate cannabis’ placement on Schedule I. Schedule I is the federal government’s classification for some of the worst drugs, such as meth and heroin. These drugs are highly addictive and have no medical use, according to the government.

Biden promised cannabis reform in a statement in October 2022. It outlined three steps his adminstration would take to end what he called the government’s “failed approach” on cannabis so far. 

Back then, Biden pardoned all federal offenses of simple possession and urged governors to do the same. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee did not make any cannabis pardons.

Biden said the next step to reclassify cannabis was to check with the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Attorney General to “expeditiously” review how cannabis is scheduled under federal law. 

Those conversations went on, apparently, behind the scenes, even out of Congressional view. Last summer Congressman Steve Cohen and Congressman Matt Gaetz grilled Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Administrator Anne Milgram for details during a meeting of the House Judiciary Crime and Federal Government Surveillance Subcommittee. They got very few. 

Milgram said her agency couldn’t move on the matter without word from HHS. She said DEA had not heard anything and had not even heard of a timeline for when HHS might send word. 

On Tuesday, The AP reported that DEA will move to reclassify cannabis, citing five anonymous sources. That proposal must then get the approval of the White House Office of Management and Budget and go through a public comment period. If approved, cannabis would be listed on Schedule II, alongside drugs such as ketamine. 

Tennessee lawmakers have long said they wouldn’t approve any looser laws for cannabis unless the drug was moved from Schedule I at the federal level. Despite the creation of the Tennessee Cannabis Commission years ago, a group tasked with establishing a cannabis program for Tennessee, no material changes have been made in state laws.  

State Rep. Jesse Chism (D-Memphis) said he hopes that with the reclassification ”we can start the ball rolling soon and begin having serious discussions here in Tennessee.”

“Our state has spent millions and millions of taxpayer dollars to enforce cannabis laws that are outdated and harmful to a lot of people, including many Tennesseans who are trying to get relief from painful chronic medical issues,” Chism said in a statement. “In addition to wasting those dollars, we’ve completely ignored the financial benefits that could be coming the state’s way. 

“I’ve filed several pieces of legislation ranging from allowing medical use to decriminalization to even trying to put a non-binding referendum on the ballot to hear from Tennessee’s voters. The main point of contention has always been its federal classification.  Hopefully, with this movement we can start the ball rolling soon and begin having serious discussions here in Tennessee.”

Tennessee Senate Democratic Caucus Chairwoman Sen. London Lamar (D-Memphis) applauded the move, saying it will will have benefits for Tennesseans seeking medicinal cannabis.

“Reclassifying marijuana as a less-dangerous drug at the federal level is a historic decision, driven by common sense,” Lamar said in a statement. “Republican lawmakers have kept Tennessee in the dark ages on marijuana policy — wasting our tax dollars locking people up for a plant. While my ultimate goal is still legalization in Tennessee, this is incredible news for folks who would benefit right now from natural medical cannabis to treat chronic pain or illness.”

Cohen, a longtime advocate for cannabis reform, was frustrated by delays in the process during that Congressional hearing last year. “I’ve been here 17 years … and I’ve seen DEA heads, I’ve seen [Federal Bureau of Investigation] directors, I’ve seen attorney[s] general, exactly where you’re sitting, say governmental gibberish about marijuana. They’ve done nothing for 17 years, and for years before that. It goes back to the [1930s]. 

“The government has messed this up forever and you need to get ahead of the railroad. You’re going to get something from HHS. Biden understands [cannabis] should be reclassified. He said from [Schedule I to Schedule III] and it should be classified from [Schedule I] to 420. We ought to just clean it up and get over with it.”