States are demonstrating significant power to oppose federal cannabis reform, as Wyoming Attorney General Keith Kautz rejected the Trump administration's medical cannabis rescheduling. Kautz, who also serves as the state's Commissioner of Drugs, formally objected to moving certain THC drugs from Schedule I to III, ensuring all marijuana products remain Schedule I in Wyoming. He cited the absence of state medical marijuana legalization or a regulatory framework, arguing such policy changes are legislative, not administrative. This decision highlights the autonomy of states, particularly restrictive ones like Wyoming. Nebraska and Indiana are among other states also challenging the federal rescheduling.
Wyoming Attorney General Keith Kautz has determined that the medical cannabis rescheduling advanced by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration and implemented by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche in April won't apply to his state.
In a press release published on July 7, Kautz said that “all marijuana products, including marijuana subject to a state medical marijuana license, shall remain on Schedule I of the Wyoming Controlled Substances Act.”
Wyoming is the latest state not to accept the implementation of medical cannabis rescheduling across the nation, underscoring the room to maneuver states have to oppose cannabis reform.
Under Wyoming law, the state's attorney general also serves as the Commissioner of Drugs and Substance Control, and normally has to adopt any changes the federal government makes to controlled-substance scheduling. But he can object instead, as long as he does so within 30 days, explains his reasons, and holds a public hearing.
Kautz, after the evaluation of eight email comments and holding one public hearing, objected to the federal government's move to reschedule state-licensed products and certain FDA-approved THC-containing drugs from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). In explaining the decision, Kautz argued that such products are already appropriately scheduled in Wyoming and that "the Wyoming Legislature has not legalized medical marijuana, has not approved a state licensed medical marijuana regulatory scheme, or approved of recognizing any other state's medical marijuana issued licenses."
Therefore, all medical cannabis products in the state will remain in Schedule I under Wyoming law. Kautz explained that “the question of whether to remove any type of marijuana from Schedule I of the Wyoming Controlled Substances Act is for the Wyoming Legislature and should not be done through the administrative rule making process.”
Wyoming has one of the most restricted cannabis policies in the U.S. Neither adult-use nor medical cannabis is legal. In 2015, it only allowed patients suffering from epilepsy that does not respond to other treatment options to use medical products containing CBD, the main non-intoxicating cannabis compound. Activists tried to legalize medical cannabis and decriminalize possession of adult-use cannabis through the ballot a few years ago, but all the initiatives failed.
Wyoming’s rejection comes after U.S. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's April final order, which determined that state-licensed products and certain FDA-approved THC-containing drugs were moved from Schedule I to Schedule III of the CSA. This comes after Trump signed an executive order in December to direct the Attorney General and the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to expedite the cannabis rescheduling process.
The process is now in the hands of the DEA, which is conducting administrative hearings considering not only medical cannabis rescheduling but also adult-use products rescheduling.