Cannabis manufacturers and distributors in Oklahoma will be required to pursue U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration registration or risk losing their state permits next year, according to a state bulletin dated May 8.
In the weeks since the Justice Department officially downgraded state-licensed medical marijuana to a Schedule 3 of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) late last month, certain medical cannabis operators have been able to file for registration with the DEA.
That process, which costs $794 and requires sharing certain information with federal law enforcement, has been understood to be optional, though observers predict DEA registration could become a prerequisite for certain benefits, such as 280E tax relief.
DEA registration is available to state-licensed medical cannabis operators in compliance with state law, according to the Justice Department’s final order.
However, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control (OBN) is believed to be the first state agency to require DEA registration to retain the state permit.
Do medical marijuana operators need DEA registration?
“Pursuant to the Final Order, marijuana in any form covered by a state medical marijuana license was placed in Schedule III of the CSA,” the May 8 bulletin, signed by OBN Director Donnie Anderson, reads.
“Therefore, a manufacturer or distributor participating in a state’s medical marijuana program is required to obtain registration from the United States Drug Enforcement Administration.”
The bulletin adds: “(E)very registrant who is a distributor or manufacturer of medical marijuana products must comply with federal law and, as such, shall be required to obtain a DEA registration.
“Failure to obtain a DEA registration could result in OBNDD administrative sanctions, up to and including the potential revocation of an [sic] registrant’s OBNDD registration(s).
“This is consistent with the requirements in place for other Schedule III registrants currently regulated by OBNDD.”
The agency said it will take no action against businesses “without the required DEA registration” until Jan. 1, 2027.
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Is Oklahoma medical marijuana coming back?
Once home to what many considered the country’s most welcoming business environment for cannabis operators, officials in Oklahoma have in recent years taken action to drastically reduce the industry.
That includes a moratorium on new business permits that officials extended until August 2028, as well as dozens of licensees who claim to have lost their permits over minor bureaucratic snafus.
Several of those operators have recovered their permits after filing lawsuits, as MJBizDaily has reported.
