Short answer: Federal marijuana rescheduling is now moving on two separate tracks, and both slowed down this month. DEA's broad hearing on moving all marijuana to Schedule III has been on hold since Sept. 29. The narrower April order, which already put marijuana sold under a state medical license into Schedule III, is in effect while a court challenge heads into 2027. DC's licensed market is medical-only, so it sits on the track that's already in effect. (What rescheduling means for DC patients.)
Track B: the broad hearing is paused
DEA's chief administrative law judge, Derek C. Julius, heard testimony from June 29 to July 15. Then three opponents of rescheduling asked him to add a Sept. 23 Government Accountability Office report on drug-scheduling procedures to the record. His Sept. 29 order put the case on hold: "this matter is STAYED pending the Motion's resolution" (stay order). The stay "has no fixed end date," Vicente LLP noted.
The government's response was due Oct. 13. DEA "has no problem with reopening the record" to include the GAO report but opposes more briefing, Marijuana Moment reported. The opponents then went further and asked for a "narrow reopening" for limited discovery and testimony. The next move is the judge's.
Track A: the April order is in effect, and in court
The April 2026 order placed FDA-approved marijuana products and marijuana under a state medical license in Schedule III (Federal Register, 91 FR 22714). Challengers took it to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, which declined in September to suspend it. On Oct. 9 the Justice Department and the challengers proposed a briefing schedule that ends Feb. 19, 2027, with an opening brief due Nov. 24, IgniteIt reported. The court still has to approve it, and no ruling date is set. Meanwhile, DEA keeps building out the registration side, including DEA's new registration forms for producers.
What it means in DC
- For patients: nothing changes at the counter this fall. DC sales remain medical-only under ABCA, and possession rules are the same as in our DC cannabis laws guide.
- For DC's licensed businesses: the federal relief that matters most to them, Schedule III treatment for medical marijuana, comes from Track A. Its risk is the court case, not the paused hearing.
- For anyone hoping for adult-use stores in DC: neither track touches Congress's DC budget rider, which is what blocks recreational sales here.
Takeaway: dates to watch are the judge's ruling on the GAO motion (no deadline set) and Nov. 24 in the D.C. Circuit, if the court adopts the proposed schedule.
News and analysis, not legal advice.
Sources
- DEA ALJ order staying case, Sept. 29, 2026
- Vicente LLP, "DEA Judge Pauses Marijuana Rescheduling Hearing Over New GAO Report"
- Marijuana Moment, DEA response on the GAO report, Oct. 13, 2026
- IgniteIt, "Marijuana Rescheduling Hits a New Deadline Today," Oct. 13, 2026
- Federal Register, 91 FR 22714, Apr. 28, 2026