Todd Blanche, President Donald Trump’s acting attorney general, on Thursday signed an order to reclassify state-licensed medical marijuana as a less dangerous drug, according to the Associated Press.
The move marks a major policy shift that for years has been sought by advocates who argue cannabis should never have been treated like heroin by the federal government.
The order does not legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use under U.S. law, but it changes the way it’s regulated. It shifts licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I — reserved for drugs without medical use and with a high abuse potential — to Schedule III — less strictly regulated.
It also provides a significant tax break for licensed medical marijuana operators and eases some barriers to cannabis research.
