Cannabis Unity Coalition Responds to President Trump’s Decision to Reschedule Cannabis, Calls on Congress to Deliver Real Reform
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Gina Giorgio
Director of Strategy and Development
Students for Sensible Drug Policy
Cannabis Unity Coalition Responds to President Trump’s Decision to Reschedule Cannabis, Calls on Congress to Deliver Real Reform
Convened by Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP), the Cannabis Unity Coalition is the nation’s largest bipartisan alliance of over 35 cannabis advocacy organizations from across the political spectrum, united for the purpose of passing federal legislation to fully legalize cannabis, release all cannabis prisoners, and repair the harms caused by over a century of cannabis prohibition.
Washington, D.C. — The Cannabis Unity Coalition, which brings together cannabis justice advocates from both the political left and political right, cautiously welcomes President Trump’s decision to reschedule cannabis under federal law as a long-overdue acknowledgment that the federal government’s approach to marijuana has been rooted in stigma rather than science, while warning that the fight for marijuana legalization is far from over.
While rescheduling marks an important shift, the Coalition emphasizes that it is not enough to repair the harms caused by decades of cannabis prohibition or to secure justice, safety, and opportunity for the millions of people who continue to be impacted by the War on Drugs.
“Rescheduling cannabis is a step forward, but it is not the finish line,” said Kat Murti, Executive Director of Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP), which convenses the Cannabis Unity Coalition. “Congress must follow through with comprehensive reforms that center public health, community repair, and the voices of those most harmed by prohibition—and that actually legalize marijuana once and for all.”
New Legal Concerns
While marijuana never belonged in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, which is reserved for substances with no accepted medical use, rescheduling to Schedule III is not the same as legalization and may even create new legal concerns.
“President Trump’s Executive Order does not change anything for the better, and may hurt the state-legal cannabis industry. Cannabis remains illegal under federal law. No one is getting out of prison or getting their federal record for cannabis offenses cleared. Federal prosecutions are likely to continue,” said Eric E. Sterling, former Counsel, U.S. House Judiciary Committee, responsible for federal drug law and enforcement (1979-1989), who represents Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP) in the Cannabis Unity Coalition. “Federal health officials stressed that this supports research, and it will reduce legal barriers. But the Trump Administration dismantling of the federal health research system and funding is likely to limit this potential upside. Dr. Nora Volkow and Secretary Robert Kennedy, Jr., stressed the hazards of cannabis at the signing of the E.O. This order has the potential to bring the state-legal cannabis programs under DEA control. If this is the approach that DEA and the Justice Department take, and Congress stops protecting the state programs, this mostly performative measure could actually be a huge step backward.”
Rescheduling further fails to address the fact that, even though 24 states and D.C. have legalized adult-use cannabis sales and the vast majority of the U.S. population now lives in states with some form of legal cannabis, over 600 individuals continue to be arrested on marijuana charges every single day in the United States.
“Rescheduling preserves federal criminalization and leaves communities vulnerable to federal penalties regardless of state law,” said Cat Packer, Director of Drug Markets and Legal Regulation, Drug Policy Alliance. “True reform requires descheduling—ending federal penalties—and replacing them with a framework that aligns with the will of the people, supports states in their regulation of cannabis and protects communities rather than punishing them.”
The Need for Further Action
The Coalition warns that without congressional action, rescheduling alone will leave critical issues unresolved — including ongoing arrests, immigration consequences, barriers to research, financial exclusion, and the continued incarceration of people for cannabis offenses.
“Descheduling is the only way to meet the demand of the people for true marijuana reform,” said Chelsea Higgs Wise, Marijuana Justice executive director. “Rescheduling to schedule 3 brings tax benefits to operators but is far from meaningful reform. There is no change in the criminalization, no change to the risk of deportation and the barriers to government benefits like SNAP remain. This moment requires restorative justice, reinvestments and true decriminalization through comprehensive legalization.”
Not only do the majority of Americans across both political parties support ending the decades long War on Cannabis, but recent polling data suggests that most Americans favor allowing states to set their own marijuana policies without federal interference.
“Reason Foundation thanks President Trump for rescheduling marijuana and looks forward to working with him to advance further reforms in Congress. Nowhere in the Constitution is the federal government granted authority to outlaw plants and, if that authority exists, it falls entirely within the powers reserved to the states,” said Geoffrey Lawrence, Research Director, Reason Foundation. “States have taken different approaches to how they regulate marijuana and it is incumbent on Congress to respect that diversity and adjust federal law to empower the true laboratories of democracy–the states.”
Cautious Optimism
Rescheduling sends a strong message that, as President Trump mentioned in his remarks while signing the executive order on marijuana reclassification—noting that he had received more calls in support of rescheduling than on any other issue and no calls in opposition— the White House stands with the 82% of Americans who oppose the War on Cannabis.
“Schedule 3 clearly does not go far enough, but having a Republican administration backing this effort should embolden more GOP lawmakers, many of whom have privately supported cannabis policy reform, to now do so publicly,” said Morgan Fox, Political Director, National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML). “It may also encourage lawmakers in Republican-led states that have yet to move toward a policy of legalization and regulation to take a serious and rational look at the issue.”
The Cannabis Unity Coalition urges the federal government to “deschedule” marijuana—completely removing any mention of cannabis, marijuana, and hemp from the Controlled Substances Act.
“Moving marijuana out of its absurd classification as a Schedule I drug is long overdue and we applaud the administration for finally acknowledging the therapeutic value that has been widely accepted by the medical community and millions of medical cannabis patients for decades. While this is undoubtedly a very positive first step, rescheduling will not end federal marijuana prohibition and doesn’t harmonize federal law with the laws allowing some form of legal cannabis in the vast majority of the states,” said Michelle Rutter Friberg, Director of Government Relations at the National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA). “In order for this move to be meaningful on the ground, we need clear enforcement guidelines issued to the DEA and FDA that would ensure the tens of thousands of state-licensed businesses responsibly serving cannabis to adults are not subject to sanctions or criminal prosecution under federal laws.”
The legal ambiguity surrounding rescheduling underscores the need for legislative action. During Cannabis Week of Unity 2025, in April of this year, the Cannabis Unity Coalition educated every office in both the Senate and House of Representatives on 11 legislative pathways to reform. Several of those bills have since been introduced in Congress.
“We must not mistake an agency adjustment for actual absolution. As long as cannabis remains a controlled substance, federal prosecution looms and the chains of conviction remain clamped onto countless lives,” said National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) Executive Director Lisa Wayne. “The MORE Act and Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act offer a mechanism to truly right the wrong, by descheduling cannabis, expunging prior non-violent convictions, and reinvesting in communities ravaged by this failed policy. This is the decisive, comprehensive decriminalization America is waiting for.”
The Cannabis Unity Coalition is committed to continuing the push for full federal legalization of cannabis and restorative justice for those who have been negatively impacted.
“America needs to legalize not reschedule cannabis. Period,” said Veronica Wright, Founder, National Coalition for Drug Legalization.
Join the Fight
To keep the pressure on lawmakers, the Cannabis Unity Coalition is calling on advocates across the country to take part in the third annual Cannabis Week of Unity, taking place the week of May 11 in Washington, D.C. Events will include advocacy days, coalition meetings, and opportunities for grassroots leaders to engage directly with policymakers.
All supporters, including those unable to travel, are further encouraged to participate from home by signing SSDP’s federal cannabis action alert and contacting their members of Congress to demand real reform—not half measures.
“Cannabis reform has always been driven by the people,” said SSDP’s Kat Murti. “Students, patients, activists, workers, and families pushed this issue forward long before Washington caught up. Now it’s time for Congress to listen—and act.”
About the Coalition
The Cannabis Unity Coalition is a national alliance of advocacy, industry, labor, patient, civil rights, and harm reduction organizations working together to advance meaningful federal cannabis reform. The Coalition is united around three core federal goals:
- End cannabis prohibition at the federal level and remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act entirely (“descheduling”).
- Release all federal cannabis prisoners and immediately end arrests and prosecution for all cannabis-related crimes.
- Repair the harms of criminalization, including automatic expungement, resentencing, and restoration of rights to those negatively impacted by cannabis prohibition.
Founded in 2023, the Cannabis Unity Coalition is currently convened by Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP). Individuals and organizations can learn more, get involved, and sign up for Cannabis Week of Unity, or support federal reform efforts by taking action through SSDP’s federal cannabis campaign tool.
Media Contact:
Gina Giorgio – gina@ssdp.org
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With chapters on campuses and in communities across the country, Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) is the largest national youth-led network dedicated to ending the War on Drugs. Our national staff, Board of Directors, chapters, and alumni work together to replace the disastrous War on Drugs with policies rooted in evidence, compassion, and human rights, at a grassroots level.
For more information, please visit: https://ssdp.org.
