While DEA's marijuana rescheduling hearing proceeds with participants for and against rescheduling, MMJ International Holdings highlights publicly disclosed political spending by major state licensed cannabis companies-and a federal cultivation application that has remained unresolved since 2018.
WASHINGTON, D.C. / ACCESS Newswire / June 29, 2026 / MMJ International Holdings, Inc. (MMJIH), a pharmaceutical cannabinoid development company pursuing FDA-regulated treatments for Huntington's disease and multiple sclerosis, today called attention to publicly disclosed political spending by major state licensed cannabis companies as the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) marijuana rescheduling hearing opened today in Arlington, Virginia.
For nearly eight years, MMJIH has pursued what federal regulators have long described as the pathway for developing marijuana-based medicines: filing Investigational New Drug (IND) applications with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), developing standardized botanical drug formulations, manufacturing under pharmaceutical quality standards, conducting stability testing, and seeking a DEA bulk manufacturing registration to cultivate marijuana for federally authorized clinical research. That DEA registration has remained pending since 2018.
At the same time, publicly disclosed Federal Election Commission (FEC) records show that several of the nation's largest state licensed cannabis companies have collectively contributed millions of dollars to political organizations advocating federal marijuana reform.
Publicly Reported Political Contributions (FEC Records)
Contributions to the American Rights and Reform PAC during 2025:
Green Thumb Industries - approximately $1,000,000
Verano Holdings - approximately $1,037,500
Curaleaf Holdings - approximately $750,000
Cresco Labs - approximately $750,000
Trulieve Cannabis - approximately $250,000
Separately reported political contributions:
Trulieve Cannabis - approximately $750,000 to President Trump's inaugural committee.
Curaleaf Holdings - approximately $250,000 toward inaugural fundraising through the U.S. Cannabis Council.
American Rights and Reform PAC activity:
More than $2 million contributed to MAGA Inc., President Trump's principal Super PAC.
Funding of advertising campaigns supporting federal marijuana rescheduling.
Approximately $6.8 million raised during the 2025-2026 election cycle.
"No one suggests these political contributions are improper," said Duane Boise, President and CEO of MMJIH. "Political participation is constitutionally protected, and these contributions were publicly disclosed as required by law. The question is not whether companies have the right to participate in the political process. The question is whether federal regulators are applying the same scientific and regulatory standards to everyone."
One Federal Standard-or Two?
As the DEA hearing begins, MMJIH notes a significant distinction in the government's own presentation.
According to the government's prehearing filing, FDA's witness is expected to explain the agency's Eight-Factor Analysis supporting marijuana's placement in Schedule III and its conclusion that marijuana has a "currently accepted medical use" (CAMU) for purposes of the Controlled Substances Act. That conclusion relies, in part, on findings that licensed healthcare practitioners have substantial experience recommending marijuana under state medical cannabis programs.
MMJIH emphasizes that currently accepted medical use under the Controlled Substances Act is legally distinct from FDA approval of a drug.
FDA approval requires substantially more than physician experience. It requires rigorous chemistry, manufacturing controls, batch consistency, stability testing, validated quality systems, and substantial evidence of safety and effectiveness through adequate and well-controlled clinical trials.
MMJIH has spent nearly a decade pursuing that federal pathway.
The company currently holds two active Investigational New Drug (IND) applications, an Orphan Drug Designation, and a DEA Schedule I analytical laboratory registration while continuing to await action on its DEA bulk manufacturing registration filed in 2018.
"If the federal government concludes that marijuana has a currently accepted medical use sufficient for Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act," Boise said, "the public deserves to understand how that conclusion fits alongside decades of FDA requirements governing the development and approval of botanical medicines."
The Question That Remains
MMJIH believes the central question extends beyond the outcome of the current rescheduling proceeding.
The question is whether companies that invested years complying with FDA's pharmaceutical development process should be held to one regulatory standard while companies operating exclusively within state marijuana programs receive the economic benefits associated with Schedule III under another.
"Our question is straightforward," Boise said. "Is the federal government applying one evidentiary standard to companies that pursued FDA-regulated drug development and another to companies that built businesses outside that framework? If the scientific standard has changed, the public deserves to know why."
About MMJ International Holdings, Inc.
MMJ International Holdings, Inc. is a pharmaceutical cannabinoid development company developing FDA-regulated treatments for Huntington's disease and multiple sclerosis. The company holds two active Investigational New Drug (IND) applications, an Orphan Drug Designation, a DEA Schedule I analytical laboratory registration, and has invested more than $10 million pursuing the federal pharmaceutical development pathway for cannabinoid medicines.
Media Contact
Madison Hisey
mhisey@mmjih.com
203-231-8583
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements regarding regulatory proceedings, pending litigation, and anticipated outcomes. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. MMJIH undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements except as required by law.
SOURCE: MMJ International Holdings
View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire:
https://www.accessnewswire.com/newsroom/en/healthcare-and-pharmaceutical/how-millions-in-political-donations-push-for-dea-marijuana-rescheduli-1183841
