DEA Judge’s Orders, Trump’s DEA Pick, Doctors’ Rescheduling Appeal Lead CBT’s Top Stories in February

The administrative law judge’s orders regarding a trio of pro-rescheduling participants led Cannabis Business Times’ most-read articles this month.

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Tony Lange

February 26, 2025

Orders involving the participation of three pro-rescheduling parties from the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) chief administrative law judge (ALJ) created a storyline that readers did not want to miss out on this month.

ALJ John J. Mulrooney granted the Connecticut Office of the Cannabis Ombudsman and The Doc App’s withdrawals from the rescheduling hearing, leaving an already uneven playing field more uneven for the hearing. Mulrooney also granted a motion for Ellen Brown, a Massachusetts Cannabis Advisory Board appointee, to continue her quest to reconsolidate with another party.

These orders come as the cannabis rescheduling hearing hangs in the balance of President Donald Trump’s new DEA leadership amid an interlocutory appeal that has delayed the process indefinitely.

“While proceedings have been stayed, I have retained jurisdiction to resolve non-dispositive procedural issues to facilitate the resumption of proceedings should the [DEA] elect to return the case for additional hearing proceedings,” Mulrooney wrote in his Feb 11 order for Brown.

Meanwhile, news of Trump’s nomination of Terrance C. Cole to be the next DEA administrator took the No. 2 spot in Cannabis Business Times’ most-read articles this month. Cole, a 22-year DEA veteran, indicated in 2024 that his views on cannabis align with Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say No” campaign that took off during the 1980s as part of the country’s drug war.

Also tied to rescheduling, the Doctors for Drug Policy Reform’s Feb. 17 brief filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit related to its exclusion from the hearing process took the No. 3 spot. The nonprofit group argued that the DEA and its former administrator, Anne Milgram, violated bedrock administrative law principles in their hearing participant selections and requested a redo.

Other stories among the most-read articles this month were on a bicameral effort in the U.S. Congress to block cannabis companies from tax relief under Section 280E of the Internal Revenue Code, even under rescheduling; climate change’s impact on cannabis crops; and Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s push to ban THC in the Lone Star State.

Catch up on our Top 10 stories from February:

The Top 10

No. 10: Senate Banking Committee Witness Urges Members to Improve, Pass SAFE Banking Act

Aaron Klien, of the Brookings Institute, told lawmakers that legislation for the cannabis industry needs to address ‘costly and unproductive’ SAR filings.

No. 9: Hawaii House Kills 2025 Cannabis Legalization Bill, Continuing Blockade on Reform

After the bill survived two committees, a rare motion prevented the legislation from being discussed on the chamber’s floor.

No. 8: Legendary Cannabis Breeder David Watson, aka ‘Sam the Skunkman,’ Dies

The California breeder, who moved to Amsterdam in the 1980s, established one of the world’s most extensive seed libraries, among other industry feats.

No. 7: Texas Lieutenant Governor Lists THC Ban as Top Priority for 2025

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is pushing a legislative initiative to prohibit hemp-derived cannabinoid products and all forms of THC in the Lone Star State.

No. 6: 7 US House Republicans File Bill to Prevent 280E Tax Relief for Cannabis Businesses

The legislation, sponsored by Texas Rep. Jodey Arrington, is similar to a bill recently offered by Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Pete Ricketts, R-Neb.

No. 5: How Climate Change Can Hurt Cannabis Crops, Bottom Line

As global temperatures rise, temperamental weather systems are damaging crops with wildfire smoke and drought, leading cannabis cultivators to face several complex challenges.

No. 4: 2 US Senators Work With Prohibitionists to Stop 280E Relief Under Cannabis Rescheduling

Sens. James Lankford and Pete Ricketts worked with Smart Approaches to Marijuana on legislation to block potential tax relief under Schedule III.

No. 3: Doctors Ask US Appellate Court for Redo in DEA’s Selections for Cannabis Rescheduling Participants

Doctors for Drug Policy Reform argues the DEA’s selections were arbitrary and capricious, providing ‘cure letters’ as evidence of ex parte communications.

No. 2: Trump Picks Permanent DEA Administrator Who Aligns With Nancy Reagan’s War on Drugs Campaign

The president nominated DEA veteran Terry Cole to head the agency; Cole has three decades of law enforcement experience, including foreign assignments.

No. 1: DEA Judge Grants Requests From 3 Pro-Cannabis Rescheduling Participants, Says Hearing Up to DEA

Connecticut Office of the Cannabis Ombudsman and The Doc App dropped out, Ellen Brown is on the clock, and attorney Matt Zorn is no longer involved.