For the 10 years the Thomas C. Slater Compassion Center has operated, it, like other marijuana dispensaries, has confronted a significant economic challenge: the federal government considers cannabis on par with society’s most dangerous drugs.
Being classified as a “Schedule 1” substance – in the same category as heroin and LSD – has meant dispensaries are prohibited from taking ordinary business tax deductions. And most banks have been unwilling to do business with dispensaries, afraid they’ll be charged with illicit drug activity.
But now the Justice Department is considering reclassifying marijuana as a “Schedule 3” drug, a category shared by less-dangerous drugs like Tylenol with codeine, although marijuana would remain illegal on the federal level.