While federally decriminalizing marijuana could have “the greatest effect” on Nevada’s legal cannabis industry, reclassifying it as a less-dangerous drug could ease tax-related burdens for the businesses, according to a 2024 state-mandated report.

President Donald Trump said it loud and clear during his executive order on Dec. 18 to reschedule cannabis: He’s never been inundated by “so many people” on a particular issue. The move directing U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi to reclassify cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III is not a small detail lost on just about anyone connected to the industry. Loosening restrictions on the plant through lowering its potential for abuse and finally recognizing its medicinal value breaks ties with 55 years of precedence under the Controlled Substances Act.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday calling on federal officials to finish reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug — a major shift in federal drug policy that could open new avenues for medical research and ease the tax burden on Nevada cannabis businesses.

We're following up this morning on the president's executive order to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug. A lot of you might be wondering what that means, and maybe what it doesn't. The biggest thing is that the order does not make marijuana legal at the federal level.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday that could reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug and open new avenues for medical research, a major shift in federal drug policy that inches closer to what many states have done.

The UNLV Cannabis Policy Institute and Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board responded to President Donald Trump’s new executive order to change federal marijuana regulations.The order, signed Dec. 18, moves cannabis out of the most restrictive category of the federal Controlled Substances Act. Instead of being treated like heroin and other Schedule I drugs, marijuana would be reclassified as a Schedule III drug that recognizes medical use and a lower risk of abuse. Experts at UNLV say the move signals a shift in federal thinking, even if it doesn’t immediately change access for consumers.

The uncertain future of federally funded homeless programs in Washoe, what this year's MJBiz Conference revealed about the Cannabis industry, and a local couple hosts art exhibits — in their home. All that and more on the latest episode of KNPR's State of Nevada.

Regardless of their business or educational backgrounds, federal prohibition and the erratic patchwork of state laws mean many cannabis operators and investors across the industry have become by default experts in arcane points of law.