Marijuana Rescheduling: What it Means for Trucking

What Has Happened.  On December 18, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order directing the federal government to conduct rulemaking to move marijuana from a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to Schedule III. Schedule I drugs, like heroin, are those with no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. By comparison, Schedule III drugs, such as Tylenol with codeine, may have accepted use in medical practice and pose a lesser potential for abuse, but still require a prescription. The Executive Order focused on the need for research into the possible medical uses of marijuana and its chemical components. It did not discuss the safety implications of marijuana use in transportation.

Does This Mean Marijuana Is Now Legal Federally?  No. The Executive Order did not change federal law or current regulations. It only directed a rulemaking. Both current Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy and past Secretary Pete Buttigieg (the Biden Administration also considered rescheduling marijuana) have said that truck drivers, airplane pilots, train engineers and others will remain under federal drug-testing for marijuana even if marijuana is rescheduled.

Does This Change State-Level Marijuana Laws?  No. Uniformity in highway safety is one reason we have federal safety regulations and federal drug-testing rules. While legal in certain states, interstate truck drivers are prohibited from using marijuana regardless of its legal status in any individual state.

What Happens Next.  There will be a federal rulemaking to carry out the Executive Order. As with all rulemakings, public comments will be sought. One concern is that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which sets drug-testing protocols for all federal agencies, operates under a statute that mandates testing for Schedule I and II drugs but not for those in Schedule III. That is why many trucking organizations, as well as the National Transportation Safety Board, have urged that the rulemaking explicitly continue federal drug testing for and prohibition of use of marijuana by truck drivers and other safety-sensitive transportation workers. ICSA will alert you when that rulemaking is posted.

What You Can Do.

1. The Executive Order may have created confusion and rumors among truck drivers. Remind your drivers and others in safety sensitive positions that marijuana prohibition and testing continues. Just as with testing for cocaine, amphetamines, PCP, and opioids, testing for marijuana will continue to be conducted on a pre-employment, random, post-accident, reasonable suspicion, and return-to-duty basis.
2. When the rulemaking is published, submit comments. Remind the federal government that marijuana use by interstate commercial drivers and other safety-sensitive workers would lead to less highway safety regardless of any rescheduling.
3. Strengthen your company safety policies. As an ICSA member, you have access to a Model Safety Plan. In addition, ICSA recommends implementing hair-testing for drugs. Apply your testing and document your efforts independently of state and federal procedures.

Just a reminder: marijuana was added to the federal drug-testing panel after a horrific train wreck where the engineer and other workers were high on marijuana and ignored safety signals. If your company has an accident, a trial attorney will reference that well-publicized event and ask, “And you don’t test your truck drivers for marijuana?”