420 with CNW — DEA Admits Less Mexican Marijuana is Getting into US Because of State Legalization

April 20, 2022 15:25:00

In a new report presented to Congress, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration reveals that as more cannabis is produced domestically, smuggling from Mexico is being undermined.

These comments are part of the federal agency’s Fiscal Year Performance estimates for 2023. In that report, the DEA talks about what it is doing to boost marijuana research, including ending the monopoly of Mississippi University in producing cannabis for federally sanctioned research projects.

While the DEA wasn’t forthright in admitting that most U.S. residents are now opting for legally produced marijuana within the country, it did indicate that domestically produced cannabis had outmuscled that originating in Mexico.

Data exists to support the belief that local marijuana laws have had a big role to play in taming the flow of cannabis from Mexico. For instance, a 2018 study undertaken by the Cato Institute concluded that state-level marijuana policy reforms had significantly undercut cannabis smuggling.

The budget document released by the DEA makes reference to the increase in the domestically produced marijuana from a new source — companies that have the DEA’s approval to manufacture marijuana for research purposes. The agency reveals that approved manufacturers have increased from one to four, and an additional two are due to get the nod by this year’s end.

The drugs agency also details how it plans to ramp up the production of cannabis for research purposes. However, the agency’s document is quiet about the notable increase in the quantity of various psychedelic compounds such as MDMA and psilocybin, as interest grows in studying these substances as treatments for mental health disorders and other clinical indications.

In addition to the document presented in Congress, the DEA recently clarified that under existing laws, the popular delta-8 THC wasn’t categorized as a controlled substance. The DEA mentioned that only those products having more than 0.3% delta-9 THC fell under the regulatory framework of the DEA since existing law doesn’t ban isomers of THC. Similarly, the DEA indicated that marijuana seeds aren’t illegal nor do they fall into the  controlled substances category, in spite of how much THC may be found in the buds harvested after those seeds are cultivated. This is because federal law legalized hemp.

Another noteworthy trend is the increasing declines in federal prosecutions on marijuana-related charges. In 2021, less than 1,000 cases of cannabis trafficking were prosecuted. This is according to the United States Sentencing Commission (USSC).  Such statistics indicate that marijuana offenses are gradually slipping down on the priority list for law enforcement agencies at the federal level. In 2020, the same federal body recorded 1,118 marijuana cases.

The roundabout admission by the DEA that state-legal marijuana policies and companies such as American Cannabis Partners are helping to stem the tide of marijuana smuggling from across the border in Mexico proves yet again that ending cannabis prohibition has far-reaching beneficial effects for the economy and communities.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to American Cannabis Partners are available in the company’s newsroom at https://cnw.fm/ACP

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