Shares of cannabis companies rise up to 80% after the move to classify the drug as a schedule three substance.
The United States has taken steps to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, in a historic move that has sent shares of cannabis companies soaring.
The U.S. Department of Justice’s recommendation on Tuesday that cannabis be classified as a schedule three drug — the same as ketamine and Tylenol with codeine — does not fully legalize recreational use, but it does pave the way for lighter punishments. , as well as greater tax benefits from private investment for industry.
Cannabis businesses are currently prevented from deducting normal business expenses at tax time due to the drug’s classification as a drug equivalent to heroin and LSD.
Shares of Canada’s Canopy Growth Corporation and Cronos Group rose 80.02% and 15.71%, respectively, while US-based Cronos Group jumped nearly 40%.
The proposed change, which follows a review initiated by US President Joe Biden, will be subject to approval by the White House Office of Management and Budget, a public comment period and review by an administrative law judge before going into effect. force.
The measure helps bridge the widening gap between federal law and legal frameworks in about 40 states where the drug is legal in some form.
Biden began a review of federal marijuana law in October 2022 and announced pardons for thousands of Americans convicted of possession.
“Too many lives have been destroyed because of our failed approach to marijuana. It’s time to right these wrongs,” Biden said in December.
Although the cannabis industry is estimated to be worth tens of billions of dollars in the U.S., the drug is considered a controlled substance under federal law, hindering interstate commerce, blocking businesses’ access to banking services, and limiting financing for medical research.
Drug prohibition, which was first banned nationally in 1937, has also been blamed for exacerbating racial inequality in the judicial system.
Black people are 3.6 times more likely than white people to be arrested for marijuana possession, despite using the drug at similar rates, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
In a Pew Research Center survey last month, 88% of Americans said marijuana should be legal for medicinal or recreational use.
Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize cannabis for recreational use in 2012.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
