New Federal Bill would Overhaul Controlled Substances Act

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New Federal Bill would Overhaul Controlled Substances Act

500th career bill filing from outgoing congressman would rewrite the rulebook on classifying and researching drugs

By Jack Gorsline

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Representative Steve Cohen (D-TN) has introduced major federal legislation to reform the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), proposing to transfer drug scheduling authority from law enforcement agencies to public health officials, deschedule marijuana, and remove regulatory hurdles to scientific research. Introduced in the House of Representatives on October 26, 2026, the 89-page Public Health and Research Reforms in Controlled Substances Act of 2026 aims to align federal drug policy with scientific evidence while eliminating quantity-based mandatory minimum sentences for controlled substance offenses.

For over fifty years, the Attorney General and the Drug Enforcement Administration have maintained primary authority over federal drug classification. Under Section 103 of the bill, primary scheduling authority is shifted to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). Section 103 also revises the statutory focus from general abuse potential to a clinical assessment of a substance's potential to cause substance use disorder, explicitly excluding isolated or occasional nontherapeutic use.

Prior to initiating proceedings to control or deschedule a substance, Section 103 requires the HHS Secretary to request a law enforcement evaluation from the Attorney General, publish a scientific evaluation evaluating 14 specific factors, and obtain a decision analysis from a newly established independent advisory committee. Appointed by the HHS Secretary in consultation with the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), the 15-to-25-member advisory panel must include pharmacologists, addiction medicine and toxicology specialists, drug epidemiologists, state-certified substance use counselors, and patient advocates. If the advisory committee recommends against controlling or removing a substance, the HHS Secretary is bound by that recommendation.

"Congressman Cohen’s bill offers a significant opportunity to move federal drug policy toward an evidence-based, public health centered focus and potentially require more proportionate responses by the DEA," said Attorney Robert Rush, founder of the Rights and Reason Project. "A critical change in this bill is moving scheduling authority from the Department of Justice to the Department of Health and Human Services. Decisions about a substance’s risks and therapeutic benefits need to be driven by scientific and medical evidence."

Under Section 102, the bill replaces outdated statutory terms in the CSA with clinical definitions tied to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Section 102 also establishes definitions for therapeutic value, benefit to society, threat to public health, and economic cost. When defining criteria for therapeutic value through notice-and-comment rulemaking, the HHS Secretary must consider improvements in patient health outcomes, including survival, pain management, quality of life, and reductions in psychiatric symptoms. The provision clarifies that the availability of alternative treatments does not negate a substance's therapeutic value.

Under Section 104, the legislation replaces the current five-schedule structure with a dual-axis classification system. Each controlled substance will be assigned both a numerical schedule (Schedules I through IV) measuring risk and public health impact, and an alphabetical schedule (Schedules A through E) assessing therapeutic utility. By separating risk from medical utility, the framework allows high-risk substances with validated medical applications to be prescribed by authorized healthcare providers.

Section 104 requires the HHS Secretary to reevaluate 32 priority substances within two years of enactment--including fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine, oxycodone, ketamine, MDMA, LSD, psilocybin, psilocin, DMT, mescaline, and ibogaine--and all remaining scheduled compounds within eight years. The section includes a default classification grid that automatically applies if administrative deadlines are missed. Additionally, Section 104 removes marijuana and tetrahydrocannabinols from the CSA schedules, applying retroactively to prior offenses, pending cases, convictions, and juvenile adjudications.

The bill also addresses regulatory hurdles affecting medical research. Section 108 transfers researcher registration authority from the Attorney General to the HHS Secretary and allows academic institutions to apply directly for research registrations. Under Section 108, researchers conducting federally funded studies or operating under an FDA investigational new drug application may begin research 45 days after notifying HHS, unless served with an order to show cause. Section 108 also establishes an expedited 15-day registration pathway through the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) for qualified researchers conducting preliminary nonhuman pilot studies, paired with updated storage guidelines and a requirement for NIDA to supply necessary compounds.

"As an attorney representing researchers affected by scheduling, I am particularly encouraged by the research reforms," Rush added. "Moving research registration to HHS and away from the DEA and creating expedited pathways for research could help scientists find treatments to address substance use disorders, mental health issues, and countless health problems in the United States."

In addition to regulatory changes, the legislation modifies federal criminal penalties and threat tracking protocols. The bill eliminates quantity-based mandatory minimum prison sentences and mandatory life sentences for drug trafficking and import-export offenses, replacing them with statutory maximum terms while adjusting maximum fine structures. Under Section 502, federal courts are authorized to reduce sentences for individuals serving terms under modified penalty structures, upon motion by the defendant, prosecutors, the court, or the Bureau of Prisons (BOP). Within 90 days of enactment, the BOP Director must identify eligible individuals, notify them of eligibility, and submit resentencing motions. Finally, the bill updates ONDCP operations by establishing a four-tier classification system for emerging drug threats, supported by a public tracking system and a rapid response grant fund. As Rush noted, "Congress should give this proposal the serious attention that Americans deserve."