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Cannabis Industry Journal | The State of Ohio’s Cannabis Legal Landscape

November 10, 2025 – Cannabis Industry Journal
Cannabis with a Gavel and an American Flag in the Background

This has been a whirlwind year in Washington, D.C., with the inauguration of President Donald Trump and the swearing in of a new Republican majority in the U.S. Senate. The “Republican trifecta” of the House, Senate, and administration has led to stalled progress with cannabis legalization, specifically the effort to reschedule cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III.

In 2023, the Biden administration set the ball rolling on rescheduling cannabis by asking for an analysis and recommendation from the Department of Health and Human Services and the Drug Enforcement Administration. HHS subsequently recommended that cannabis be rescheduled to Schedule III, and in 2024, the DEA published a notice of proposed rulemaking moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III. However, the DEA process to finalize the rule has been stalled since January, with no particular movement in sight.

Fast forward to today: The federal government has been operating under a lapse of appropriations and has been shut down since October 1. Trump has mentioned in statements that his administration is “looking at” reclassifying cannabis and has posted to social media about it, but federal agencies have shown very little momentum on rescheduling. With midterm elections on the horizon, 2026 will be an interesting year for policymaking in D.C. Many are questioning whether the administration will undertake rescheduling, as it could be considered a hot-button political issue. If we know anything about the Trump administration, however, it is that it keeps everyone guessing.

Click here to read the full article written by Kristina Dahmann, Gregory May, Joe Heaton, and Logan Householder published in Cannabis Industry Journal

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