SCHEDULE III IS HERE. On April 22, 2026, Acting AG Todd Blanche signed,
and the DEA published, a final order moving FDA-approved marijuana drug
products and state-licensed medical cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III.
280E goes away for medical-licensed operators. Treasury was directed to
consider RETROACTIVE relief. The DEA set June 29 to argue about whether
adult-use follows. We break down what just happened, who wins, who loses,
and what every operator needs to do this week.
Plus: SCOTUS sounds skeptical of gun bans for cannabis users (US v. Hemani),
Pennsylvania holds 4/20 testimony, Virginia picks a launch date, Ohio guts
its own voter initiative, Rhode Island’s residency wall falls in federal
court, PharmaCann lays off 132 in Colorado, plus Q1 sales hit $6.5B.
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TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Cold open, this week’s headlines
01:30 Story 1: DOJ reschedules state-licensed medical cannabis to Schedule III
07:00 Story 2: 280E cracks open, Treasury asked to consider retro relief
12:00 Story 3: DEA’s June 29 hearing on full rescheduling
16:30 Story 4: Pennsylvania’s 4/20 hearing, most-likely-next state
20:00 4:20 BREAK plus sponsor reads
21:30 Story 5: Virginia’s two retail bills, Spanberger picks the date
26:00 Story 6: Ohio’s SB 56 rollback, how a red legislature eats a voter initiative
30:30 Story 7: Rhode Island’s residency wall falls, Judge DuBose freezes lottery
35:00 Name That Strain: Toad Venom (Animal Face x Sin Mintz)
37:30 Story 8: PharmaCann exits Colorado, 132 layoffs and the MSO playbook
42:00 Story 9: SCOTUS US v. Hemani, guns plus weed at the Supreme Court
47:00 Story 10: Q1 2026 sales hit $6.5B, 4/20 up 47%
51:00 Final Thought
54:00 Outro
ABOUT CLN
Cannabis Legalization News covers the law, business, and politics of cannabis
every week. Hosted by Thomas Howard (cannabis attorney at Howard Law Group,
Cannabis Industry Lawyer). Sponsored by Collateral Base, strategy and
execution for cannabis licensing applications and dispensary operations:
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#CannabisNews #ScheduleIII #280E #CannabisLaw #MarijuanaPolicy #CLN
