Politics
Drug Testing Industry Group Is ‘Sounding The Alarm’ About Marijuana Rescheduling As Trump Plans Action
A major drug testing industry organization is “sounding the alarm” amid reports that President Donald Trump may soon finalize a proposal to reschedule marijuana, arguing that the reform would “have catastrophic consequences for the safety of the United States workforce and transportation sectors.”
Ahead of a scheduled “National Conversation on the Rescheduling of Marijuana” webinar this week, National Drug & Alcohol Screening Association (NDASA) board member Emilee Avery said in a press release that rescheduling “will dismantle critical safety measures that have protected our roads, airways, and communities for decades.”
“The guardrails implemented under President Reagan’s administration 30 years ago have been instrumental in ensuring that safety-sensitive positions, such as truck drivers, school bus drivers, and airline pilots, remain drug-free,” she said. “This decision threatens to undo all of that progress.”
A final decision hasn’t been made at this point, but multiple sources have claimed that there’s an executive order that could be issued imminently, possibly directing the attorney general to complete the process of moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).
Cannabis industry stakeholders are holding out hope that the reform will be achieved as soon as possible, but opponents—including NDASA and Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM)—are working to dissuade the administration before a final decision is made. For what it’s worth, a White House spokesperson told Marijuana Moment last week that no actions have been finalized so far.
“Rescheduling by Presidential Order does not come without unintended consequences that should be addressed,” Jo McGuire, executive director of NDASA, told Marijuana Moment. “We must consider that drug testing for THC can only occur at the federal level for the safety-sensitive employee population (such as airline pilots, school bus drivers, railway workers, and commercial truck drivers) under Schedule I and II.”
“Let’s not forget that marijuana is still an impairing substance and the labs will not be approved to test for THC under Schedule III, without a policy intervention,” she said. “We are also removing foundational, best-practice protocols that protect public safety from drug-related accidents, injuries, and fatalities.”
NDASA claimed in a bulletin to its drug testing industry members that if rescheduling doesn’t come with that it called a “Safety Carve Out,” the reform “would open the door for school bus drivers, truck drivers, and even pilots and other transportation positions to use marijuana without mandatory testing.”
“That means the people we trust with our children, our families, and our lives could be at risk,” it said.
Several Republican members of Congress are expected to speak at NDASA’s marijuana rescheduling event on Tuesday.
McGuire told Marijuana Moment that Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) is “confirmed” and Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX) is “highly likely.” Rep. Eric Burlison (R-MO) is a “probably,” she said, with two other unnamed lawmakers who are “waiting to hear about the voting schedule” before confirming.
Mark Magsam, chairman of NDASA, said, “If marijuana is rescheduled without regard to workplace safety, transportation employees may very well find a loophole where they would be free from marijuana testing. This poses a significant risk to the safety of our roads, skies, and rails.”
NDASA was also a participant in a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) hearing on the Biden administration-initiated marijuana rescheduling proposal, opposing the reform.
Meanwhile, bipartisan congressional lawmakers have been weighing in on the potential rescheduling decision this week—with Democrats like Rep. Alex Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) calling the reform a “no-brainer” and others like Harria pushing back against the proposal.
Trump said in mid-August that he’d be making a decision on rescheduling within weeks. But despite that timeline and the escalating rumors, a White House spokesperson told Marijuana Moment on Thursday that “no final decisions have been made on rescheduling of marijuana.”
The Washington Post reported on Thursday evening that Trump was planning to issue an executive order directing federal agencies to move ahead with cannabis rescheduling.
The outlet also said the president met earlier this week in the Oval Office with marijuana industry executives, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz. During that meeting, Trump phoned Johnson, the House speaker, who expressed his opposition to rescheduling cannabis,
If the administration does ultimately enact rescheduling, it would mark one of the most significant developments in federal marijuana policy since its prohibition a half a century ago, with a Schedule III reclassification recognizing that marijuana has medical value and a lower abuse potential compared to other Schedule I drugs like heroin.
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Trump endorsed rescheduling—as well as industry banking access and a Florida adult-use legalization initiative—on the campaign trail last year. The president had been largely silent on the issue since taking office during his second term, until a briefing in August where in response to a reporter’s question he announced the administration would decide on rescheduling within weeks.
The possibility of an imminent rescheduling announcement comes weeks after the president signed a key spending bill that would effectively ban most consumable hemp products, drawing criticism from stakeholders in the hemp industry who argue the policy change would eradicate the market.
