Marijuana Moment
Oklahoma drug officials have issued guidance warning medical marijuana businesses that they must register with the federal government in order to avoid facing punishments, including potentially having their state registrations revoked.
Donnie Anderson, director of the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control (OBNDD) said in a letter to cannabis industry operatives on Friday that they are required to fill out a new Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) registration form that was launched in conjunction with the Trump administration’s move to federally reschedule cannabis.
Citing state laws, he said that “every 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 registrant’s OBNDD registration(s),” the letter says. “This is consistent with the requirements in place for other Schedule Ill registrants currently regulated by OBNDD.”
“To ensure compliance with these federal regulations and minimize any impact on lawfully operating entities, OBNDD will not consider pursuing administrative action on medical marijuana businesses registered with OBNDD for the manufacturing or distribution of marijuana without the required DEA registration until January 1, 2027. It is strongly recommended that all OBNDD registrants authorized to manufacture or distribute medical marijuana apply for the appropriate DEA registration within the sixty-day period after the April 28, 2026, publication of the Final Order. By timely submitting an application to the DEA, a registrant will not be subjected to OBNDD administrative action for the manufacturing, or distribution of marijuana without a DEA registration while the DEA application filed within the sixty-day period remains pending. Failure to timely submit an application to the DEA would render any manufacturing or distribution of medical marijuana products without a DEA registration to be in violation of the Final Order. These activities could subject a registrant to OBNDD administrative sanctions up to and including the potential revocation of an registrant’s OBNDD registration(s).”
Anderson concluded by saying that “nothing included in this letter is intended to be taken as legal advice concerning the obligations of a registrant set forth in either federal law or Oklahoma statutes.”
“This letter is merely being provided to inform medical marijuana businesses of their administrative responsibilities,” he wrote. “If there are additional questions concerning compliance with either federal, state, or administrative law, a registrant should consult with an attorney.”
The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA), which licenses and regulates medical cannabis businesses in the state, separately released guidance earlier this week on federal rescheduling and a recently filed lawsuit challenging the reform.
“This is an evolving federal conversation, but our focus remains the same: protecting patient health and safety and responsibly regulating the industry,” OMMA Executive Director Adria Berry said. “These announcements have created a lot of questions, but very few answers have been received. OMMA will continue to relay information as released by the DEA and federal government, but, ultimately, we encourage licensees to seek professional counsel as they determine the best decisions for their business.”
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R), meanwhile, has suggested recently that lawmakers should put a measure on the ballot to roll back the state’s medical cannabis program. He said during his State of the State address in February that voters should “shut it down,” arguing that “liberal activists” conned the state and “opened up Pandora’s box” with legalization.
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