William Sumner
If you think that the wave of legalized cannabis in recent years has turned the tide of reefer madness, think again. On May 2, 2018, a panel of judges for the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a challenge filed by cannabidiol (CBD) producers against a Drug Enforcement Agency rule that classifies CBD as a Schedule I drug.
The rule originated in 2016 when the DEA created a new Administration Controlled Substances Code Number for the term “marijuana extract,” which defined a marijuana extract as “an extract containing one or more cannabinoids that has been derived from any plant of the genus Cannabis…” This meant that CBD, regardless of whether it was extracted from hemp or cannabis, was now effectively a Schedule I substance.
Firing back at the DEA, the Hemp Industries Association filed a challenge against the rule, arguing that the agency overstepped its authority by scheduling substances that were not included in the Controlled Substances Act and that hemp-based CBD extracts were protected under state laws and Farm Bill provisions.
However, because of the vagaries of the federal law, their arguments mattered little. Under federal law, a party can petition a Court of Appeals for a review of final DEA decision. However, if the petitioner fails “to make an argument before the administrative agency in comments on a proposed rule,” they are prevented from raising that argument on judicial review.
Without its strongest argument, the HIA’s case hinged on whether or not the DEA rule violated agricultural laws, which the justices determined it did not and consequently ruled in favor of the DEA. Although the case is currently being appealed, the results of this case could have a chilling effect on the U.S. CBD market.
In 2016, the U.S. hemp industry generated approximately $688 million in product sales, with $130 million alone coming from Hemp-based CBD. According to the Hemp Business Journal, the CBD market will grow to a $1.8 billion in consumer sales by 2020 with $450 million of those sales coming from hemp-based sources.
Now those projections are cast into doubt because of this recent ruling. At the moment, hemp-based CBD products are still available for purchase online from online retailers like Amazon, but the question is for how long?
3 comments
Michael Laurita
May 5, 2018 at 3:27 pm
Dose it make sense that cbd is legal to buy in all 50 states but the dea wants make it illegal to use
Debra Borchardt
May 6, 2018 at 4:15 pm
I’ve spoken with the DEA on this subject. According to their interpretation of the CSA, hemp & marijuana both come from the cannabis genus plant and since CBD is an extract from this plant they believe it is subject to the CSA.
Ashley
May 9, 2018 at 10:22 am
But schedule 1 class is narcotics such as percosets. The structure of either is not within the definition of a narcotic so their using the term “marijuana” to wrongfully classify a natural healing modality. This is so similar to Kratom. No entity should be able to classify based on opinion. That’s tyrannical! There are so many peer reviews and studies coming back and that’s being thrown out. That’s criminal. That’s biased and unconstitutional! My patients want and deserve safe treatments and they prefer cbd over mustard gas and radiation. Facts are facts, this is corruption. I’m not allowed in America to know what’s in my food. I’m not allowed to take proven natural remedies or my insurance and Drs drop me. We can’t heal ourselves w toxins they push but they illegalize proven natural remedies for profit. And we have to accept this! Toxins?! Poisons?! What a rights violation. Lets just change our name from America to Pseudoland. No one knows my body better than me not should have the right to leave me with no options!