Tracker category
Federal: tracker entries
Federal law sits on top of Texas law. Marijuana is still a Schedule I controlled substance federally, except for the narrow categories moved to Schedule III in April 2026. Congress also rewrote the federal definition of hemp in November 2025, with the changes starting in late 2026.
Federal moves do not legalize anything in Texas by themselves, because state law has its own prohibitions. Federal law and Texas explains how the two layers interact.
- SignedFederal
Congress pushes most of the federal hemp redefinition to December 11, 2026
A federal stopgap spending law split the start date of the new federal hemp definition. One piece starts November 12, 2026; most of the rest starts December 11, 2026.
Read the detailsIn November 2025, Congress rewrote the federal definition of hemp (see the November 12, 2025 entry). That change was set to start on November 12, 2026. On September 2, 2026, a continuing resolution (Public Law 119-103) delayed portions of the new definition until December 11, 2026.
According to the Congressional Research Service, the exclusion for cannabinoids that the plant cannot produce naturally still begins November 12, 2026, while the other portions, including the total THC standard and the per container THC cap for finished products, begin December 11, 2026. For Texas this matters because state hemp rules are tied to the federal definition in several places. This is a law change only. It does not change Texas marijuana law.
- In effectFederal
Federal order moves state-licensed medical marijuana to Schedule III
A Justice Department final order placed FDA-approved marijuana products and marijuana covered by a state medical marijuana license in Schedule III. All other marijuana stays in Schedule I.
Read the detailsThe order was published in the Federal Register on April 28, 2026. It covers two categories: marijuana in an FDA-approved drug product, and marijuana subject to a state medical marijuana license. It also set up a faster DEA registration path for state medical licensees. It did not legalize recreational use.
The bigger question, whether all marijuana moves from Schedule I to Schedule III, went to a separate DEA administrative hearing, built on the proposal first published in May 2024. As of late October 2026 that proceeding is still open and no final rule has been published. For Texans, the federal change does not alter state law: possession outside the Compassionate Use Program is still a state crime. How the federal order applies to Texas's low-THC program is a question for federal regulators, and we have not seen an official answer.
- SignedFederal
Presidential executive order tells the Justice Department to speed up rescheduling
Executive Order 14370 directed the Attorney General to finish the rulemaking on moving marijuana to Schedule III as quickly as federal law allows.
Read the detailsThe order, signed December 18, 2025 and published in the Federal Register on December 23, 2025, also called for more research on medical marijuana and CBD and for work on a federal framework for hemp-derived cannabinoid products. An executive order cannot reschedule a drug by itself. It points the agencies at the process, and the April 2026 order covering state-licensed medical marijuana followed. It does not change Texas law.
- SignedFederal
Congress rewrites the federal definition of hemp
A federal spending law switched hemp to a total THC standard and capped finished hemp-derived cannabinoid products at 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container, with a one-year delay.
Read the detailsSection 781 of Public Law 119-37 (the bill that ended the fall 2025 federal shutdown) amended the federal hemp definition from the 2018 farm bill. The new definition counts THCA and similar cannabinoids toward the THC limit, excludes products with cannabinoids that the plant cannot produce naturally or that were synthesized outside the plant, and caps finished products at 0.4 mg total THC per container. It was set to start November 12, 2026, and parts of it were later delayed to December 11, 2026 (see the September 2, 2026 entry).
This is federal law. Texas has its own hemp statute and rules, which is why both levels show up on this tracker.
- PendingFederal
Federal government proposes moving marijuana to Schedule III
The Justice Department published a proposed rule to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the federal Controlled Substances Act.
Read the detailsThe proposal followed a 2023 recommendation from the Department of Health and Human Services. A proposed rule is not law. It led to a long administrative hearing process at the DEA. In April 2026 a separate final order moved state-licensed medical marijuana to Schedule III, while the broader proposal covering all marijuana is still pending as of late October 2026.
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