Marijuana Businesses Could Advertise In Newspapers And Magazines If Rescheduling Is Approved, Congressional Researchers Say

If marijuana is rescheduled as the Biden administration has proposed, cannabis businesses would no longer be federally banned from advertising in newspapers and magazines. But, because marijuana would still be illegal, congressional researchers say in a new report that most criminal penalties and collateral consequences for other activities such as possession and distribution “would remain the same.”

In its latest analysis on the impact of rescheduling, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) highlighted a lesser-known effect on the proposed policy change, pointing out that an existing prohibition on advertising Schedule I drugs in written media would be lifted for marijuana if it’s reclassified as a Schedule III drug under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

“It is unlawful to knowingly place in any newspaper, magazine, handbill, or other publications any written advertisement that has the purpose of seeking or offering illegally to receive, buy, or distribute a Schedule I controlled substance,” the report says. “The penalties for doing so are up to four years in prison and/or a criminal fine. These penalties would no longer apply if marijuana moves to Schedule III.”

CRS also reiterated that the reclassification would mean that state-legal marijuana businesses could finally take federal tax deductions that they’ve been barred from under an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code known as 280E. A recent public comment on the rescheduling proposal from the Minority Cannabis Business Association says that modest policy change would significantly benefit small and minority-owned cannabis operators, while adding tens of thousands of new jobs over the next several years.

But while these reforms would certainly benefit state marijuana markets, the new CRS report stresses that cannabis would still remain federally illegal, as Schedule III drugs are prohibited unless they’re prescribed by a doctor. That would require the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve marijuana as a medicine, which is unlikely given that the agency typically does not green light botanical substances as prescription drugs.

CRS has published a number of reports focused on the limitations of a Schedule III reclassification with respect to the largely continued criminalization under federal statute.

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