Interpretation of Listing of “Tetrahydrocannabinols” in Schedule I

For the reasons provided herein, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) interprets the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) and DEA regulations to declare any product that contains any amount of tetrahydrocannabinols (THC) to be a schedule I controlled substance, even if such product is made from portions of the cannabis plant that are excluded from the CSA definition of "marihuana." Consistent with this interpretation, DEA is publishing today a proposed rule in a separate Federal Register document that immediately follows this interpretive rule. The proposed rule proposes to revise the wording of the DEA regulations to make clear that the listing of THC in schedule I refers to both natural and synthetic THC. In a third Federal Register document being published today (following the proposed rule), DEA is issuing an interim rule, which exempts from control certain industrial products, processed plant materials, and animal feed mixtures made from those portions of the cannabis plant that are excluded from the definition of marijuana, to the extent such products, plant materials, and feed mixtures contain THC but are not used, or intended for use, for human consumption. The interim rule also provides a 120-day grace period for persons to dispose of existing inventories of THC-containing "hemp" products that are not exempted from control.