President Trump has signed an Executive Order directing the federal government to reclassify medical marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act—placing it in the same category as prescription drugs such as Tylenol with codeine and many others.
Let’s be clear: this does not legalize medical marijuana under federal law. Only Congress can do that. But this move signals a significant shift in federal policy. Schedule III drugs are recognized as having legitimate medical use.
In short, the federal government is saying, “We still don’t love it, but we’ll stop pretending it lacks medical value.”
And in our world, federal posture matters.
Why This Matters to Housing Providers
For years, owners and managers of affordable housing have been caught between state-level legalization and federal-level prohibition. Residents arrive with medical marijuana cards in hand, while HUD guidance still says: If marijuana is being used or possessed, it’s prohibited—regardless of state law.
That contradiction has led to conflict, evictions, fair housing complaints, appeals, and countless headaches for managers, especially in states where physicians routinely prescribe cannabis for chronic pain, PTSD, anxiety, and other conditions.
Trump’s Executive Order tells federal enforcement agencies to stop treating medical marijuana like heroin—and to treat it more like every other prescription medication that must be used legally and appropriately.
The federal government may now decline to prosecute marijuana-related activity that complies with state medical programs.
That’s a sea change—even if HUD hasn’t blinked yet.
HUD-Assisted Properties: What Should You Do Now?
HUD guidance remains fully in force until HUD changes it. HUD isn’t known for lightning-fast reaction time. Their last major marijuana guidance dates back to 2011, and it has been clear and unforgiving.
Current HUD rules still require:
- Marijuana use or possession is prohibited, even with a medical card.
- Owners must deny new admission to applicants using marijuana.
- Owners may—but are not required to—evict current residents for use discovered after admission.
HUD will eventually have to address this Executive Order, but no one should bet their tax credits or HAP contract on future possibilities.
Recommendation for HUD-Assisted Properties
Until HUD issues new guidance:
- Do not change screening criteria.
- Do not rewrite house rules.
- Continue enforcing federal prohibition.
- Document marijuana-related lease decisions carefully.
- Watch for new HUD notices—change could come fast once HUD absorbs the Executive Order.
Think of this like watching a storm offshore: you don’t board up the windows yet, but you keep a weather eye out.
Non-HUD Affordable Housing: A Different Story
Owners operating LIHTC-only, bond-only, or purely conventional properties operate in a more flexible environment.
With marijuana reclassified into the same legal tier as many common prescription drugs, the legal risk profile is shifting.
Federal prosecutors are now directed to stand down when use is legal under state programs. That makes enforcement or eviction decisions based solely on medical marijuana use more legally vulnerable—especially in strong tenant-rights states.
And fair housing arguments just got an upgrade.
If a doctor prescribes a Schedule III medication for a disability, refusing to accommodate the patient may appear discriminatory.
Recommendation for Non-HUD Properties
Consider the following steps:
- Stop automatically denying applicants with medical marijuana cards. Instead, evaluate behavior and lease compliance—not the prescription.
- Do not classify medical marijuana as an illegal drug in your house rules.
- Treat it like any other controlled medication:
- no smoking in non-smoking buildings,
- no impairment in common areas,
- no illegal distribution or cultivation,
- Prescriptions must be verifiable.
- Avoid blanket cannabis bans at LIHTC sites. They will not age well legally.
- Prepare to update policies quickly as IRS and state HFAs react.
Schedule III status provides complete medical legitimacy. Housing policy will catch up—some states and syndicators will push first.
Looking Ahead
Federal agencies under the Trump administration have historically moved quickly to implement his Executive Orders. With this change rooted in formal DEA scheduling authority, expect:
- HUD internal review,
- DOJ enforcement pause,
- state-level tenant rights expansion,
- and a wave of new accommodation requests.
If HUD modernizes its marijuana rules—and it’s hard to imagine it won’t—the agency could finally permit medical marijuana at assisted living sites.
That would remove one of the most unpopular, unworkable, and frankly outdated rules in affordable housing.
And it’s long overdue. We’ve spent 15 years pretending that a cancer patient using medical cannabis is equivalent to a heroin dealer. The legal fiction is collapsing.
Bottom Line
HUD-assisted properties: Stay the course. Federal law still prohibits marijuana. HUD rules still apply. Do not change policy until HUD says otherwise.
Non-HUD properties: Begin moving toward accommodation-based policies. Federal enforcement risk has declined, and disability-based claims are increasing.
Final Thought
This Executive Order doesn’t rewrite federal law—yet. But it knocks the first brick out of a wall that was always going to fall. The smart managers will start planning now, not when HUD announces a new handbook section 15 years too late.
And if nothing else, remember: We now live in a world where marijuana is in the same legal class as Tylenol with codeine. The sky hasn’t fallen. Most managers have seen worse—just ask anyone who lived through HOTMA implementation.
Stay alert, stay compliant, and don’t let today’s headlines rewrite tomorrow’s policies until the rulebooks catch up.
“`