South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley (R) published an opinion on Tuesday concluding that the federal rescheduling of marijuana will likely have a negligible impact on South Dakota's medical-marijuana program because DEA administrative rules permit state medical-marijuana facilities to continue operating with proper federal and state registration, according to the opinion. The opinion was requested by lawmakers who serve on the legislature's Medical Marijuana Oversight Committee.
South Dakota AG says federal marijuana rescheduling likely negligible for state program
South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley (R) published an opinion on Tuesday concluding that the federal rescheduling of marijuana will likely have a negligible impact on South Dakota's medical-marijuana program because DEA administrative rules permit state medical-marijuana facilities to continue operating with proper federal and state registration, according to the opinion. The opinion was requested by lawmakers who serve on the legislature's Medical Marijuana Oversight Committee.
Under an order issued by Attorney General Todd Blanche in April, marijuana products regulated by a state medical cannabis license moved from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act to Schedule III, as did marijuana products approved by the Food and Drug Administration. An administrative hearing is considering broader marijuana rescheduling.
Jackley's opinion said South Dakota has faced a somewhat analogous situation previously with respect to federal hemp legalization. It pointed out that a court agreed police powers are traditionally reserved to states and that a no preemption clause in the federal legislation that legalized hemp eliminated any potential for preemption.
Jackley also cited DEA's April 2026 rule, saying an existing manufacturer, distributor, or dispensary operating under a valid state license may now do so in compliance with federal law if they register with the DEA.
South Dakota does not currently schedule marijuana as a controlled substance under state law, though it criminalizes possession and distribution outside of the medical cannabis program. Jackley said if South Dakota were to reschedule marijuana to a Schedule III controlled substance, general rules regarding Schedule III substances would apply, but the action would have to be taken by either the Legislature or the voters, independent from federal rescheduling.
Lawmakers laid out six potential options of future state cannabis policy actions in their request to the attorney general, and Jackley replied that none of them would be excluded by current federal or state law but that it would be up to the legislature and voters to decide which, if any, to pursue.
The opinion comes after South Dakota lawmakers weighed legislation this session on federal rescheduling's impact, including one bill that would have repealed the state's medical marijuana law 90 days after the attorney general certified that cannabis had been federally rescheduled to Schedule III. South Dakota regulators have voiced uncertainty about how federal marijuana rescheduling will work in conjunction with the state's law. State medical cannabis program administrator Whitney Brunner told lawmakers in August that officials had received little federal guidance beyond requests for information.
- The source does not state the full calendar date of the Tuesday opinion's publication.
- The source does not state what the six potential state cannabis policy options were.
- The source does not state whether the bill to repeal the state's medical marijuana law advanced or failed.
- The source does not state the outcome of the administrative hearing considering broader marijuana rescheduling.
- The source does not state what federal guidance South Dakota officials requested or received beyond requests for information.
- The source does not state how many lawmakers requested the opinion or supported the repeal bill.
- The source does not state the year of the April order issued by Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Read the original at Marijuana Moment