President Donald Trump’s recent executive order on reclassifying marijuana may loosen some federal restrictions around the drug, but gun owners and buyers should not expect much impact anytime soon.

Broadly speaking, the president’s order simply accelerates the process of improving medical research into marijuana and other cannabidiol products. It does this by ordering the U.S. Attorney General to “take all necessary steps to complete the rulemaking process related to rescheduling marijuana to Schedule III” under the Controlled Substances Act.

Key takeaways:

• Trump’s executive order does not reclassify marijuana.
• The order speeds up reclassification, which could still take months.
• Federal firearms law will not change with reclassification.
• There are ongoing court cases challenging federal marijuana laws.
• Research into marijuana may result in new, federally approved medications over time.

Currently, marijuana is classified as a Schedule I drug. This is the most restricted category, meant for drugs that have “no currently accepted medical use, a high potential for abuse, and a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug under medical supervision.” 

Trump’s order cites research that contradicts that classification, including research from federal agencies like the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services. In fact, the formal recommendation to loosen restrictions came from HHS under President Biden in 2023. 

In short, reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III drug will loosen restrictions on medical researchers, not recreational users. However, Trump’s order does not itself reclassify the drug; it merely accelerates the process of reclassification. 

Furthermore, even a Schedule III designation would not change federal law restricting marijuana users from purchasing or possessing firearms and ammunition. There is no distinction under federal firearms law between drugs that are deemed Schedule I (e.g., heroin), Schedule II (e.g., cocaine), and Schedule III (e.g., ketamine).  
 

This law is on full display when you fill out your ATF Form 4473 for a firearm transaction. What is more, that form explicitly bars any would-be firearm buyer from being an “unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana,” regardless of state laws or the reclassification of marijuana.

“Following this reclassification, unlawful users or addicts of marijuana will still be classified as prohibited persons pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3), and may not receive or possess firearms or ammunition,” stated the National Shooting Sports Foundation in a recent compliance alert to its members. “If you have a reasonable cause to believe that a prospective purchaser is an unlawful user or addict of marijuana, you should not complete a sale of firearms or ammunition. As a reminder, state legalization of marijuana similarly has no effect on legality under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3), and possession by a purchaser of a state medical marijuana card should be taken as evidence of unlawful use.”

It is possible that the reclassification of marijuana will open doors for research that eventually leads to a new and federally approved drug. Such an FDA-approved, doctor-prescribed medication could circumvent the legal barriers around firearms and marijuana.

As it stands, it will likely take months for the U.S. Attorney General, Department of Justice, and DEA to complete the formal process of rescheduling. In the meantime, there are looming court battles challenging the overall constitutionality of restricting firearm rights for marijuana users. 

Thus, Americans will just have to wait and watch the snail-paced race between the nation’s slow legislative and bureaucratic processes and the courts to see just where the future of marijuana and gun rights will lead.