Terrance C. Cole, the newly appointed Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), failed to mention the stalled cannabis rescheduling process in a recent release outlining his eight top priorities for the federal agency.
During his confirmation hearings, when lawmakers asked about moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III, Cole said that investigating the issue would be “one of my first priorities” if appointed to the position.
However, now that he has been confirmed, the new DEA chief has announced the agency’s first eight priorities, and none of them relate to the stalled cannabis rescheduling process. Instead, Cole says the agency will focus on enforcement actions like targeting international drug traffickers, including the Mexican drug cartels; disrupting illegal drug supply chains; expanding partnerships with state and local law enforcement; targeting “illicit finance,” including cryptocurrency-based sales; and other “coordinated enforcement efforts against transnational criminal organizations.”
Notably, the DEA Administrative Law Judge who was overseeing the rescheduling case announced his retirement last week, noting that moving forward, “all matters filed in this case will be forwarded to the DEA Administrator, for whatever action, if any, he deems appropriate.
President Trump said during last year’s election that he supported removing cannabis from Schedule I under the Controlled Substances Act, but since taking office, the second Trump administration has so far remained quiet on the issue.