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Federal government effort to reclassify marijuana as less dangerous on hold

Marijuana plants
Tim Agne/KJZZ
Marijuana plants.

The federal government labels marijuana as a Schedule 1 in the same category as LSD, peyote and heroin. An effort to relabel it as less dangerous is now on hold.

The decision by a DEA-administrative-law judge also grants a request for time to file an appeal, which needs a resolution before the larger process can continue.

Destinee Blanco, director of operations for the Arizona Marijuana Industry and Trade Association, said reclassification would set a stage for scientific research, regulations and equity.

“There is urgency for it and we need to address these outdated policies that are currently within cannabis," Blanco said.

The federal government currently classifies marijuana as having no medical use and a high potential for abuse.

The effort to reclassify pot was launched last year by the Justice Department for the Biden administration that ends in less than a week.

When the effort can resume, the person leading the DEA will have been chosen by President-elect Donald Trump, who Blanco hopes will continue the reclassification process.

“I think Trump is more towards hearing the people and what we want,” Blanco said.

Matthew Casey has won Edward R. Murrow awards for hard news and sports reporting since he joined KJZZ as a senior field correspondent in 2015.