Bill > SB1603

This bill, concerning medical cannabis, primarily focuses on the state's response should federal laws change regarding marijuana's status as a controlled substance. Specifically, it amends Tennessee Code Annotated (TCA) Section 39-17-403(d) to state that if marijuana is no longer classified as a controlled substance under federal law, the Tennessee Commissioner of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services cannot remove or reclassify marijuana in Tennessee unless the General Assembly has first created a legal framework for regulating marijuana and explicitly authorized the Commissioner to do so. This provision aims to ensure that any future changes to Tennessee's marijuana laws are carefully considered and enacted by the legislature, rather than solely by an administrative agency, especially in response to federal de-scheduling. The bill also mentions that it amends various other titles of the Tennessee Code, but the provided text only details this specific change related to the Commissioner's authority.