DEA Marijuana Rescheduling Hearing Starts June 29: What It Means for Cannabis

The most consequential federal cannabis hearing in decades kicks off in just 27 days. On June 29, 2026, the Drug Enforcement Administration will convene an administrative hearing at its Arlington, Virginia facility to consider whether marijuana should be reclassified from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act — a change that could reshape the legal and commercial landscape of cannabis in America.

For consumers, business owners, and advocates who have been watching federal cannabis policy crawl forward for years, the timing and stakes couldn't be higher. Here's everything you need to know before the gavel drops.

How We Got Here: From Executive Order to Hearing Room

The path to June 29 began on December 18, 2025, when President Trump signed an executive order directing the U.S. Attorney General to complete the marijuana rescheduling rulemaking process "in the most expeditious manner in accordance with federal law." That directive kicked off a compressed regulatory timeline.

On April 23, 2026, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche issued an order that immediately moved two specific categories of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III: FDA-approved marijuana products (such as Epidiolex) and marijuana products regulated under state-issued medical licenses. That partial rescheduling was a significant step, but it left recreational cannabis and unlicensed products still in Schedule I.

The June 29 hearing takes the next logical — and far more sweeping — step, asking whether marijuana as a whole should be reclassified to Schedule III, as recommended by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2023.

What the Hearing Will Actually Decide

The DEA's administrative hearing, set to run through no later than July 15, 2026 (with a recess July 3–5 for Independence Day), is not a public forum. It is a formal adjudicatory proceeding in which parties with recognized standing will present testimony and evidence before an administrative law judge.

The core question: Does the scientific and medical evidence support moving marijuana from Schedule I — a classification reserved for substances with "no currently accepted medical use" and high abuse potential — to Schedule III, which acknowledges accepted medical use and lower relative abuse potential?

Schedule I currently places cannabis alongside heroin. Schedule III would place it alongside ketamine and anabolic steroids. The reclassification would not legalize cannabis nationally, but it would have profound downstream effects on research, taxation, and interstate commerce.

Who Is Participating — and Who Is Fighting It

The deadline to file a notice of participation was May 28, 2026, and a wide array of stakeholders filed to be heard. Supporters of rescheduling — including cannabis industry groups, medical associations, and patient advocates — are expected to argue that decades of state-level legalization and medical research have rendered the Schedule I designation scientifically indefensible.

Opposition is coming from anti-legalization groups, some law enforcement associations, and conservative advocacy organizations that argue rescheduling will send the wrong signal about marijuana's risks and undermine federal drug policy.

NORML, one of the nation's oldest cannabis advocacy organizations, filed for formal participant status in May, arguing that the hearing record would be "incomplete" without the perspective of adult cannabis consumers. NORML plans to present testimony from founder R. Keith Stroup and Deputy Director Paul Armentano, as well as expert witnesses on adult-use cannabis systems.

"Consumers must be represented," NORML wrote in its filing. The organization has long maintained that cannabis should ultimately be descheduled entirely — removed from the Controlled Substances Act — rather than merely rescheduled.

What Schedule III Would Actually Change

Rescheduling marijuana to Schedule III would not create a federal recreational market. What it would do is significant:

Research: Schedule I classification has made clinical cannabis research extraordinarily difficult in the United States. Schedule III would lower barriers to federally approved research, potentially accelerating the clinical evidence base for medical cannabis applications.

The 280E Tax Burden: This is arguably the most immediately felt impact for cannabis businesses. Under current law, cannabis companies operating in Schedule I cannot deduct ordinary business expenses on federal taxes under Internal Revenue Code Section 280E. Rescheduling to Schedule III would eliminate this prohibition, potentially saving the industry hundreds of millions of dollars annually. (Note: the April 23 partial rescheduling already covers state-licensed medical businesses, but broader rescheduling would extend this relief to all licensed operators.)

Banking and Finance: While the SAFER Banking Act has remained stalled, Schedule III status would reduce — though not eliminate — the reluctance of banks and financial institutions to serve cannabis businesses.

Stigma and Perception: Federal drug scheduling carries significant social weight. Moving cannabis out of Schedule I would formally acknowledge, at the federal level, that it has accepted medical value.

What It Won't Change

Recreational cannabis would still be federally illegal under Schedule III (it would simply be a less severe federal violation). Cannabis would not be federally legal to sell, buy, or transport across state lines for recreational purposes. Individual states would retain their regulatory frameworks. The DEA and DOJ would still have authority to enforce federal law against unlicensed activity.

NORML and many advocates emphasize that Schedule III is a floor, not a ceiling — an important step, but not the full descheduling that aligns federal law with public opinion. According to a Pew Research survey published last month, 88% of Americans now support legal marijuana access in some form.

Key Deadlines Already Passed — And What's Next

The participation deadline of May 28 has passed, so the list of hearing participants is now set. The hearing begins June 29 at 9 a.m. ET at the DEA Hearing Facility, 700 Army Navy Drive, Arlington, VA 22202, and will run through July 15.

Following the hearing, the administrative law judge will issue a recommended ruling, which then goes to the DEA Administrator for a final decision. That decision can be appealed to federal courts. The full process could still take months to years before any final rule becomes effective.

One additional note: state-licensed medical cannabis businesses had until June 22, 2026, to file required DEA registration paperwork to take advantage of the April 23 rescheduling order. That window has now closed.

Key Takeaways

• The DEA hearing begins June 29 and runs through July 15, 2026, in Arlington, VA.
• The hearing will consider full rescheduling of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III — broader than the April 23 partial order.
• Schedule III would eliminate the 280E tax burden, ease research restrictions, and carry significant stigma reduction.
• NORML and industry groups will argue for rescheduling; anti-legalization groups will oppose it.
• Rescheduling would not legalize recreational cannabis federally but would be the most significant shift in federal marijuana policy in decades.

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