Global Ganja Report

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Dec. 18 to accelerate the reclassification of marijuana, a move that would ease decades-old restrictions that have classified the drug alongside heroin as having no accepted medical value.

The US Controlled Substances Act ranks drugs along a five-tier spectrum based on their potential for abuse and recognized medical value. Schedule I drugs are those with a high likelihood of abuse, no accepted medical use, and considerable health risks even when administered under medical supervision. Since 1970, marijuana has been listed alongside heroin as a Schedule I drug. Schedule V drugs are those with accepted medical uses and a relatively low likelihood of abuse.

The US Supreme Court announced Dec. 15 that it will not hear a case challenging the federal illegality of marijuana. The case, Canna Provisions v. Bondi, was brought by four Massachusetts commercial cannabis growers. The businesses alleged that the Controlled Substances Act exceeds the powers of Congress under the Commerce Clause and violates the right to due process under the Fifth Amendment.

In response to the growing tensions between the Trump White House and Colombia, the South American nation's President Gustavo Petro called for replacing the policy of marijuana prohibition with a regulatory framework allowing for adult use and international export of cannabis, like "any good."

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on June 11 signed a bill creating a consortium of universities, hospitals and pharmaceutical firms to conduct clinical trials on ibogaine, in hopes of receiving US Food & Drug Administration approval. The press release on the signing hails ibogaine as an "emerging treatment for neurological and mental health conditions." Lawmakers approved $50 million to support the effort, making Texas the global leader in psychedelic research investment. (Texas Tribune)

President Donald Trump has appointed veteran DEA agent Derek Maltz as acting head of the Drug Enforcement Administration. Maltz is a notorious old-school hardliner where cannabis is concerned. In an interview last year, he recycled the discredited notion that cannabis is a "gateway drug" that leads to mental health problems. Maltz has previously linked the plant to school shootings. 

Legalization in states across the country has led to a reassessment of the word "marijuana." Is it a dated term with racist roots? Many advocates seem to think so. I'm not one of them. Now, Cannabis vs Marijuana: Language, Landscape and Context, a new book by David Paleschuck, dives into the debate. It's a polemic with just one point of view on the cannabis vs. marijuana subject. In the intro, he writes:

A series of documents from US Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) officials published Jan. 12 make clear the department's recommendation that cannabis be reclassified to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act, allowing cannabis to be prescribed by medical professionals. Officials wrote that the basis for the recommendation is the "currently accepted medical use" of the plant.

Despite a heretofore uninspiring record, Biden is poised to complete a trifecta of long-sought reforms of federal cannabis law: giving the industry access to financial services, expungement of convictions for possession, and allowing medical research.