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1 1 (June 28, 2024)

handle is hein.crs/govephy0001 and id is 1 raw text is: The Impact of Proposed Rescheduling of Marijuana on D.C. Regulatory Authority June 28, 2024 In 2014, voters in the District of Columbia (the District) approved Initiative 71, a ballot measure that, as a matter of local D.C. law, repealed the local prohibition on the recreational use of marijuana in the District within certain limitations. The initiative did not, however, repeal the prohibition on the sale of marijuana for recreational use. In response, Congress included in its annual appropriations bill a policy rider prohibiting the District from expending any funds to legalize or reduce the penalty associated with any Schedule I controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act (including marijuana) or any tetrahydrocannabinols derivative. Congress has included this provision in every subsequent appropriations bill funding the District. Because this policy rider specifically references Schedule I controlled substances, the proposed rescheduling of marijuana by the Department of Justice and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from Schedule I to Schedule III would affect the legal authority of the District government to regulate marijuana. If the current appropriations policy rider were to remain, effect unchanged, the proposed rescheduling of marijuana would permit the District government, as a matter of local law, to authorize the commercial sale of recreational marijuana, establish market regulations, and levy marijuana taxes, among other policy options. A previous CRS Insight outlined policy considerations related to rescheduling marijuana more broadly, and a prior Legal Sidebar examined the legal consequences of moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under federal law. This Legal Sidebar examines the current legal status of marijuana in the District and analyzes the specific effect that rescheduling marijuana would have on the District's regulatory authority over marijuana under the current appropriations rider. It concludes with considerations for Congress on how it could respond to the proposed rescheduling with respect to the District in particular, given Congress's unique role with respect to the District's governance. Current Legal Status of Marijuana in the District In the District, marijuana is regulated by both federal and local law, which define marijuana differently. Under D.C. law, marijuana includes the leaves, stems, flowers, and seeds of all species of the plant genus Cannabis, whether growing or not, but does not include (1) the plant resin or compounds of the plant Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov LSB11188 CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress

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