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Advocates Call For Removal Of DEA From Cannabis Research Approval Process

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Science.

For many years the DEA has controlled which entities can conduct cannabis research in the United States. That has resulted in research being limited historically. More research is being conducted in the U.S. than years past, however, the situation is still far from optimal.

Considering how popular medical cannabis is in the U.S. and beyond, how many wellness properties the cannabis plant is known to possess, and how many more are yet to be discovered, it makes sense that cannabis research should be embraced rather than hindered. Unfortunately, the DEA’s involvement in the cannabis research approval process is holding things back.

Research in the United States benefits the global cannabis community, not just the U.S. Thankfully, advocates are making a big push to change the current situation. Below is a press release that was sent out today by our friends at the National Cannabis Industry Association:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) submitted comments this week in response to the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Request for Information on Controls to Enhance the Cultivation of Marihuana for Research in the United States issued in March. The association argues that public health agencies are far better suited to determine the qualifications of parties engaged in medical or scientific research or production and recommends that the DEA be removed as the agency in charge of final approval for such applications. The comments also cite years-long delays in approving existing applications as additional justification for transferring control of application approval away from law enforcement, and point out several issues in the rule-making process that will likely hinder research.

The full comments are available here.

Despite publicly stating in 2016 that it was interested in expanding production of cannabis for research purposes and streamlining study application review, none of the more than 30 applications that have been submitted since then have been approved by DEA. Under current policy, there is only one legal federal supplier of cannabis located at the University of Mississippi. Researchers and experts have repeatedly claimed that the cannabis produced there is substandard, insufficient for research purposes, and not representative of what is available to consumers in either regulated or illicit markets around the country.

“It is painfully clear that the DEA is either unable or unwilling to meet the increasing demand for cannabis research from voters, policymakers, and the scientific community,” said Aaron Smith, executive director of the National Cannabis Industry Association. “By continuing to make this agency the gatekeeper for studies and research production, we are doing a disservice to the nation at a time when we need as much health-related information as possible. Federal agencies should be actively facilitating research that could reveal more about the medical benefits of cannabis, not hiding behind outdated policies to delay or discourage the pursuit of knowledge.”

In January, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health held a hearing featuring representatives of federal agencies involved in approving cannabis research and production, including the DEA. Several members of the committee expressed frustration at the inability of witnesses to provide substantive information about how the process would be improved or timelines for approval of existing applications.

“On behalf of its nearly 2,000 members, NCIA hereby requests that these proposed regulations be amended and/or withdrawn… and that a qualified public health agency be appointed to serve as the coordinating agency instead,” the comments conclude. “We also request that the applicant pool be expanded to include companies that are or have cultivated cannabis in accordance with the laws of any state, regardless of whether the DEA concludes such actions did or did not technically violate the [Controlled Substance Act]. Most importantly, NCIA requests that the U.S. Government incentivize research and create a pathway for less restrictive means by which the country can access important information about the medicinal properties of cannabis.”

Cannabis is legal for adults in eleven states as well as the District of Columbia and the territories of CNMI and Guam, and 33 states as well as several territories have comprehensive medical cannabis laws. The substance is legal in some form in 47 states.

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The National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) is the largest cannabis trade association in the U.S. and the only organization broadly representing cannabis-related businesses at the national level. NCIA promotes the growth of a responsible and legitimate cannabis industry and works toward a favorable social, economic, and legal environment for that industry in the United States.

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U.S. Cannabis Plant Seizures Spike, Arrests Fall In 2019 According To DEA

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

Cannabis prohibition started at the national level in the United States in 1937. Since that time the federal government in the U.S. has worked to eradicate cannabis crops across the country and arrest people that cultivate, possess, and/or distribute cannabis.

For many decades cannabis was prohibited across the entire U.S., however, in 1996 California voters passed the nation’s first medical cannabis legalization measure. Since that time a number of other states have followed suit and a growing list of states have also legalized cannabis for adult use.

As cannabis prohibition continues to erode in the U.S., it is important to remember that the federal government, and many states, continue to wage a war on the cannabis plant and those that consume it. The DEA released stats this week regarding cannabis plant seizures and cannabis arrests in the U.S. which is detailed in a press release by NORML that can be found below:

Federal law enforcement agents and their partners made fewer marijuana-related arrests in 2019, but seized a far greater number of plants than they did the year before, according to annual data compiled by US Drug Enforcement Administration.

According to figures published in the DEA’s Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression Statistical Report, the agency and its law enforcement partners confiscated an estimated four million marijuana plants in 2019 – up from 2.8 million in 2018.

By contrast, marijuana-related marijuana arrests compiled by the DEA fell to 4,718 in 2019 – a decrease of 16 percent from 2018’s totals. It was the second-lowest number of arrests reported by the DEA in the past decade. In 2011, for instance, the DEA seized over 8.7 million marijuana plants and made over 8,500 annual arrests as part of its nationwide Eradication/Suppression activities.

Commenting on the longer-term trends, NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano said: “Following the enactment of statewide adult-use cannabis legalization laws, both DEA-related marijuana arrests and seizures have fallen dramatically. That said, these totals affirm that targeting marijuana-related growing operations still remains a DEA priority, even at a time when most Americans have made it clear that they want cannabis policies to head in a very different direction.”

Much of the spike in plant seizures in 2019 was attributable to an increase in activity in California. In 2019, law enforcement eradicated 1,344 outdoor grow sites statewide — up from 889 in 2018, and seized nearly 3.2 million plants, nearly twice the previous year’s total.

In 2018, the same year that California began permitting licensed adult-use sales of cannabis, marijuana plant seizures fell nearly 30 percent from the prior year. In February 2019 however, the Governor announced the deployment of national guard troops to track down on illicit marijuana grow operations, an effort which may have played a role in the sudden uptick in seizures in 2019.

According to the DEA, “The DCE/SP began funding eradication programs in Hawaii and California in 1979. The program rapidly expanded to include programs in 25 states by 1982. By 1985, all 50 states were participating in the DCE/SP. … In 2020, the DEA continued its nation-wide cannabis eradication efforts, providing resources to support the 127 state and local law enforcement agencies that actively participate in the program.”

DEA data for 2019 is online here.

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NORML‘s mission is to move public opinion sufficiently to legalize the responsible use of marijuana by adults, and to serve as an advocate for consumers to assure they have access to high-quality marijuana that is safe, convenient, and affordable.

Find out more at www.norml.org and read our factsheets on the most common misconceptions and myths regarding reform efforts around the country at www.norml.org/marijuana/fact-sheets