Federal policy on marijuana, 2017-2018
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- See also: Marijuana on the ballot by year
On January 4, 2018, the Trump administration rescinded the Cole Memorandum, a 2013 policy that deprioritized the enforcement of federal marijuana laws in states where marijuana had been legalized. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said that in deciding which activities to prosecute under federal laws, such as the Controlled Substances Act, "prosecutors should follow the well-established principles that govern all federal prosecutions. ... These principles require federal prosecutors deciding which cases to prosecute to weigh all relevant considerations, including federal law enforcement priorities set by the Attorney General, the seriousness of the crime, the deterrent effect of criminal prosecution, and the cumulative impact of particular crimes on the community."[1][2]
As of March 2018, the possession, purchase, and sale of marijuana was illegal under federal law. Proponents of legalization argue that it could lead to increased revenues for the state, improved health for consumers, and better law enforcement outcomes. Opponents are concerned with marijuana's potential impact on substance abuse, road safety, minors, and the environment.
This page tracked major events and policy positions of the Trump administration and the 115th United States Congress on marijuana from 2017 and 2018. This page was updated through 2018. Think something is missing? Please email us at [email protected].
Click on the timeline below to learn more about each headline.
- January 4, 2018: Sessions rescinds Cole Memo
- September 1, 2017: Marino nominated to lead Office of National Drug Control Policy
- October 17, 2017: Marino withdraws
- May 12, 2017: Department of Justice policy change in drug cases
- May 1, 2017: Sessions request to end Rohrabacher-Farr amendment
- February 23, 2017: Possible increased enforcement of federal marijuana laws
- Trump administration officials on marijuana
- 115th Congress on marijuana
- The 2016 Republican Party Platform on marijuana
- Marijuana laws and ballot measures in the United States
December 20, 2018: Trump signs the 2018 Farm Bill
On December 20, 2018, President Donald Trump (R) signed the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, more commonly known as the 2018 Farm Bill, into law, which legalized the production of hemp by removing it from the Schedule I list of controlled substances under federal law. The bill defined hemp as any cannabis plant, or part of a cannabis plant, that contains less than 0.3 percent of THC, the substance that gives cannabis its psychoactive properties.[3] By extension, cannabis oil, or cannabidiol (CBD)—one of the non-psychoactive ingredients found in marijuana—was also made legal under federal law so long as it contained less than 0.3% THC.[4] Despite the legalization of hemp and CBD at the federal level, individual states retained the ability to prohibit the materials.
January 4, 2018: Sessions rescinds Cole Memo
On January 4, 2018, Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a memorandum rescinding the Cole Memorandum, a 2013 policy that deprioritized the enforcement of federal marijuana laws in states where marijuana had been legalized.[5] Sessions' memorandum stated that, in deciding which activities to prosecute under federal laws such as the Controlled Substances Act, "prosecutors should follow the well-established principles that govern all federal prosecutions. ... These principles require federal prosecutors deciding which cases to prosecute to weigh all relevant considerations, including federal law enforcement priorities set by the Attorney General, the seriousness of the crime, the deterrent effect of criminal prosecution, and the cumulative impact of particular crimes on the community."[6]
September 1, 2017: Marino nominated to lead Office of National Drug Control Policy
On September 1, 2017, the White House announced that President Donald Trump had nominated U.S. Rep. Tom Marino (R-Pa.) to serve as the director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.[7]
October 17, 2017: Marino withdraws
On October 17, 2017, Marino withdrew his name from consideration following "a Washington Post-'60 Minutes' joint investigation that highlighted his support for legislation that weakened the government's ability to go after drug companies, something critics say has contributed to the nation's opioid crisis. ... Marino was a leader in passing the legislation last year that made it tougher for the Drug Enforcement Administration to stop suspicious shipments of prescription drugs," according to The Hill.[8][9][10][11]
May 12, 2017: Department of Justice policy change in drug cases
On May 12, 2017, Politico reported that Attorney General Jeff Sessions would withdraw a 2013 directive on drug policy from former Attorney General Eric Holder. Holder's directive had instructed federal prosecutors not to specify the amount of drugs in cases that they considered to be low-level and non-violent.[12] In a memo to federal prosecutors, Sessions wrote, "[P]rosecutors must disclose to the sentencing court all facts that impact the sentencing guidelines or mandatory minimum sentences, and in all cases seek a reasonable sentence."[13]
May 1, 2017: Sessions request to end Rohrabacher-Farr amendment
On May 1, 2017, Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent a letter to Congress asking legislators to deny recertification to the Rohrabacher-Farr amendment that had been attached to budget bills concerning the Department of Justice. The amendment, which originally went into effect in 2014, specifies that federal funds used by the Justice Department cannot be used to prevent states from "implementing their own laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession, or cultivation of medical marijuana."[14] In his letter, Sessions wrote, "I believe it would be unwise for Congress to restrict the discretion of the Department to fund particular prosecutions, particularly in the midst of an historic drug epidemic and potentially long-term uptick in violent crime. The Department must be in a position to use all laws available to combat the transnational drug organizations and dangerous drug traffickers who threaten American lives."[15]
February 23, 2017: Possible increased enforcement of federal marijuana laws
White House press secretary Sean Spicer ind
- ↑ U.S. Department of Justice, "Guidance Regarding Marijuana Enforcement," August 29, 2013
- ↑ The Hill, "Read: Attorney General Jeff Sessions's memo changing marijuana policy," January 4, 2018
- ↑ United States Department of Agriculture, "Executive Summary of New Hemp Authorities," May 28, 2019
- ↑ Perkins Coie, "What Does the 2018 Farm Bill Mean for the Hemp and CBD Businesses?," December 31, 2018
- ↑ U.S. Department of Justice, "Guidance Regarding Marijuana Enforcement," August 29, 2013
- ↑ The Hill, "Read: Attorney General Jeff Sessions's memo changing marijuana policy," January 4, 2018
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Trump taps Pennsylvania congressman to be drug czar," September 1, 2017
- ↑ Politico, "Trump to tap Rep. Tom Marino as 'drug czar,'" September 1, 2017
- ↑ Politics PA, "Breaking: Marino to Join Trump White House," April 11, 2017
- ↑ The Morning Call, "Congressman Tom Marino withdraws name from consideration for drug czar," May 4, 2017
- ↑ The Hill, "Trump drug czar nominee withdraws," October 17, 2017
- ↑ Politico, "Sessions moves to lengthen drug sentences," May 12, 2017
- ↑ Department of Justice, "Memo from Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Department Charging and Sentencing Policy," May 10, 2017
- ↑ Portland Business Journals, "A bipartisan eruption as Jeff Sessions, citing drug epidemic and crime, wants to go after medical marijuana," June 13, 2017
- ↑ Mass Roots, "Exclusive: Sessions Asks Congress To Undo Medical Marijuana Protections," June 12, 2017
