By Joseph Choi | The Hill
President Trump on Thursday signed an executive order to speed up the rescheduling of marijuana from Schedule I to the less severe Schedule III, with the stated goal of expanding cannabis research.
The executive order will direct the attorney general to expedite the completion of the rescheduling process. The Biden administration had begun the rescheduling process but left the matter unfinished by the time Trump assumed office. In August, Trump signaled he was open to finishing where Biden left off.
“The executive order the President will sign today is focused on increasing medical research for medical marijuana and CBD — cannabidiol,” a senior administration official said in a press briefing. “The president is very focused on the potential medical benefits, and he has directed a commonsense approach that will automatically … start working to improve the medical marijuana and CBD research to better inform patients and doctors. That’s the primary goal.”
President Trump Signs an Executive Order, Dec. 18, 2025 https://t.co/BsnrRMrsTP
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) December 18, 2025
