Politics
Trump Signs Fentanyl Criminalization Bill That Could Also Open Up Research On Marijuana, Psychedelics And Other Schedule I Drugs
President Donald Trump has signed a bill into law that will permanently ban analogues of fentanyl—though it also contains provisions that would remove barriers to conducting research into the risks and benefits of marijuana, psychedelics and other Schedule I drugs.
The president signed the Halt All Lethal Trafficking of (HALT) Fentanyl Act on Wednesday, accompanied by his yet-to-be-confirmed pick for head of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Terrance Cole.
Despite the portions of the legislation that are aimed at streamlining studies on drugs, advocates have voiced concerns about the primary intent to criminalize people over a wider array of controlled substances.
“Today we strike a righteous blow to the drug dealers, narcotic traffickers and criminal cartels that we’ve all been hearing so much about for so many years, and very little has been done,” Trump said at the signing ceremony in the White House, surrounded by people holding photos of family members who’ve been impacted by the fentanyl crisis.
“We’ll be getting the drug dealers, pushers and peddlers off our street—and we will not rest until we have ended the drug overdose epidemic. It’s been getting a little bit better but it’s horrible,” he said. “With this bill, we are officially and permanently classifying all fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I narcotics, which is actually a very big deal. It doesn’t sound like much. It’s a big deal.”
He added that Cole, in the audience, “better be good” as DEA administrator if he’s ultimately confirmed by the Senate. Trump also lauded another attendee, Sara Carter, his nominee for director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), who has voiced support for medical cannabis as an alternative treatment option.
While the focus of the president’s speech was on fentanyl criminalization, other components of the newly enacted law would smooth the process of research into Schedule I drugs like marijuana.
“What we did in this bill—and I think it’s something that everybody on the floor can be proud of—is we put into this bill the capability to do extensive research by our research universities, by the [National Institutes of Health and] by the [Food and Drug Administration],” Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-VA) said ahead of the bill’s passage in the House last month.
“This bill has the component parts to make that possible, unlike our Schedule I on marijuana, which never allowed research, or realistic research, and created some of the dilemmas that we have today with that substance,” he said. “We fixed that with this bill.”
For advocates, the problem is with the crux of the legislation, which would classify fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I drugs under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), including analogues that haven’t been proven to carry the same risks as the most well-known potent opioid. They say the scheduling action would increase mandatory minimum sentences, reflecting an outmoded war on drugs mentality that would contribute to mass incarceration.
Some of the research provisions of the bill are similar to those contained in a marijuana-focused measure that former President Joe Biden signed into law in 2022.
Under the legislation, a research applicant who is actively registered with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to study Schedule I and II drugs would need to have their request assessed within 30 days of sending a notice to the Justice Department.
A non-registered applicant would have to have their submission considered within 45 days of sending the notice.
The measure also states that research that’s being conducted or funded by federal agencies like the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would qualify for expedited processing.
Further, the bill says that duplicative registrations would no longer be required for all researchers involved in an approved study of a Schedule I substance if they’re all part of the same research institution.
However, while it would also provide for the limited manufacturing of controlled substances by researchers, there’s a specific exemption for cannabis with respect to the manufacturing provisions.
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Meanwhile, a retired professional football player who’s since become an advocate for marijuana policy reform recently met with top Trump administration officials at the White House to discuss the ongoing federal cannabis rescheduling process.
This month, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) again notified an agency judge that the marijuana rescheduling process remains stalled under the Trump administration.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was previously vocal about his support for legalizing cannabis, as well as psychedelics therapy. But during his Senate confirmation process in February, he said that he would defer to DEA on marijuana rescheduling in his new role.
Separately, former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) was reportedly photographed reviewing a document that appears to be a draft contract to provide services—including “administration-related guidance”—to a firm affiliated with the major marijuana company Trulieve. The visible portion of the document describes a lucrative bonus if a certain “matter resolves,” with an “additional ‘Super Success Fee’” for other “exclusive policy remedies.”
Last month, the former congressman reiterated his own support for rescheduling cannabis—suggesting in an interview with a Florida Republican lawmaker that the GOP could win more of the youth vote by embracing marijuana reform.
Gaetz also said last month that Trump’s endorsement of a Schedule III reclassification was essentially an attempt to shore up support among young voters rather than a sincere reflection of his personal views about cannabis.
A survey conducted by a GOP pollster affiliated with Trump that was released in April found that a majority of Republicans back a variety of cannabis reforms, including rescheduling. And, notably, they’re even more supportive of allowing states to legalize marijuana without federal interference compared to the average voter.
Meanwhile, Trump picked former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi (R) to run DOJ, and the Senate confirmed that choice. During her confirmation hearings, Bondi declined to say how she planned to navigate key marijuana policy issues. And as state attorney general, she opposed efforts to legalize medical cannabis.
Amid the stalled marijuana rescheduling process that’s carried over from the last presidential administration, congressional researchers recently reiterated that lawmakers could enact the reform themselves with “greater speed and flexibility” if they so choose, while potentially avoiding judicial challenges.
Meanwhile, a newly formed coalition of professional athletes and entertainers, led by retired boxer Mike Tyson, sent a letter to Trump on Friday—thanking him for past clemency actions while emphasizing the opportunity he has to best Biden by rescheduling marijuana, expanding pardons and freeing up banking services for licensed cannabis businesses.
Photo courtesy of Gage Skidmore.
