Over the past week, many news organizations have been running exaggerated headlines about a supposed change by the federal government to allow marijuana to be brought into airports and airplanes.
But it’s not true, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) tells Marihuana Momenti.
“TSA’s policy on medical marijuana has not changed,” a TSA spokeswoman said in an email Wednesday.
“According to the TSA website: If any illegal substance or evidence of criminal activity is found during the security screening, TSA will refer the matter to law enforcement,” they said.
While it’s true that the agency’s list of medical marijuana “What can I bring?” section of its website was updated on April 27, there were no major changes in policy.
Currently, the website says “Yes,” passengers can carry medical marijuana in both the cabin and checked bags, with special instructions.
But TSA Cannabis Policy Says “Yes” to Medical Marijuanawith the same caveats, since 2019.
both current The version of the page was updated last month and archived The version from seven years ago reads:
“TSA’s screening procedures are security-based and designed to detect potential threats to the aircraft and passengers. Accordingly, TSA security officers do not search for illegal drugs, but if a security screening detects illegal substances or evidence of criminal activity, TSA will refer the matter to a law enforcement officer.”
The previous version also had this language regarding federally legal hemp products, but it has now been removed in the latest update:
“Under federal law, possession of certain marijuana and cannabis-infused products, including certain Cannabidiol (CBD) oils, is illegal. TSA officers must report any suspected violation of the law, including possession of certain marijuana and cannabis-infused products.
Products/medicines containing CBD derived from hemp or approved by the FDA are legal as long as they are produced within the regulations set forth by law under the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018.
Many news organizations that haven’t bothered to compare the current version of the TSA page to the previous one seem to think so The Trump administration’s move to federally regulate cannabis last month it caused the air travel safety agency to make a change in its policy, but that is not the case.
“Website updates occur periodically for clarity and accuracy,” said the TSA’s email to Marijuana Moment on Wednesday. “TSA policy remains the same. No changes have been made.”
Other agencies, meanwhile, have made cannabis policy changes consistent with federal rescheduling.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has published a Draft update to a gun purchase form to recognize the legal status of medical marijuana in the reprogramming. The revised section of the question states that only the “recreational use or possession of marijuana” is federally prohibited, omitting the prior form’s mention of medical cannabis.
The US Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) said they plan to issued new tax guidelines for the marijuana industry after reprogramming. The reform will benefit state-licensed marijuana businesses by allowing them to take federal tax deductions that are currently prohibited under IRS Code Section III, known as Section 280E.
Even the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which has long opposed the legalization of cannabis and accused the Biden administration of stalling the initiative in the reorganization process, has done so. It launched a registration process for legal marijuana businesses in the state to take advantage of the federal benefits that come with the reform.
The Department of Transport, however, clarified this last week Truck drivers, airline pilots and other federally regulated safety-sensitive workers still cannot use medical marijuana without being punished
The TSA, for its part, posted a marijuana-infused claim to celebrate National Brownie Day Back in 2020.
“We hear it’s National Brownie Day, so we’re here to talk about something really sticky-icky-icky (ooh wee),” the federal agency posted on its Instagram account. “Hopefully this isn’t posted near 4:20 because we’re going down.”
That high-flying introduction was followed by a sort of public service announcement, warning passengers not to bring cannabis through airports.
“Marijuana, humble or neat, is not dope in your cabin or checked bag,” the message reads, setting up a rhyming scheme and immediately dropping: “This includes cannabis products and CBD oil, which are illegal under federal law, except for products that contain no more than 0.3% THC or are approved @F dry weight.”
The hashtags included in the post include “#NationalBrownieDay,” “USAtraveling,” “#leaveitathome,” “#chronnic” (misspelled) and “#maryj.”
Image courtesy of Steve Fitzgerald.