For music lovers, the annual release of Spotify Wrapped is a perfect excuse to get nostalgic and take a look back at the year that was, even if it's not quite over just yet. Who says we can't do the same when it comes to cannabis? Here are three of the most consequential developments from the world of cannabis over the past 365 days.
RESCHEDULING MOVES FORWARD
Speculation has been swirling around the prospect of rescheduling cannabis from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act since late 2022, when the Biden administration announced it would look into making such a move.This spring, the Drug Enforcement Administration announced that it would move forward with the proposal and drop cannabis to the less restrictive Schedule III. Such a move would not outright legalize cannabis at the federal level, but it would effectively decriminalize it.
Progress has been slow, but the agency did have its first hearing on the issue earlier this month, and a second hearing is set for January.
CANNABIS IS BIG MONEY
Industry retail and analytics firm Flowhub estimates that cannabis will pump more than $115 billion into the United States economy during 2024, an increase of nearly $15 billion over 2023.This increase comes despite numbers from Washington showing a plateau in the economic impact from cannabis in the state. Washington's legal marketplace turned 10 this year, and the leveling out of the state's numbers suggests the marketplace has reached its mature size.
Elsewhere however, other states have opened or expanded their legal markets, which has pushed 2024 to the highest economic impact from cannabis on record.
MORE TO COME
While President-elect Donald Trump's cannabis policy prefers to leave the issue up to the states, he's not yet in charge and the Biden administration has taken a broader, federal approach to cannabis reform.Democratic lawmakers have increased the pressure on Biden in the weeks since the election to take more action before leaving office. In late November, 14 notable Democratic members of Congress sent a letter to Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris urging them to push reform forward during the final weeks of their administration.
That pressure seems to be working. At a briefing last Friday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre noted that more pardons were in the works, and she specifically mentioned cannabis.♦
