Puerto Rico: DEA Rescheduling Hearing Record Closed as Scheduled

As of 16 July 2026, the DEA’s marijuana rescheduling hearing record closed on schedule the day before, ending two weeks of testimony that will feed the next step of the Schedule III process. For Puerto Rico, the outcome now sits with Chief Administrative Law Judge Derek Julius, then with the DEA Administrator, before any change reaches the island’s more than 130 licensed dispensaries.

What Closed on 15 July

The hearing opened at DEA headquarters in Arlington, Virginia on 29 June and ran through 15 July, with a recess for Independence Day. On the last day of testimony, 14 July, a consolidated party of attorneys general from Nebraska, Idaho, Indiana, and Louisiana put the opposition case on the record, calling Yale School of Medicine’s Dr Deepak Cyril D’Souza and Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal. Julius closed the record on 15 July per the schedule set out in the DEA’s 25 June press release.

There were no oral closing arguments. All parties submitted their positions in writing.

The Post-Hearing Clock

Julius now writes a recommended decision. No statutory deadline binds him, so the timing is his to set. After that, parties have 20 days to file exceptions. The full record then moves to the DEA Administrator, who issues the final rule. A Federal Register publication follows, and that is the point at which any change to Schedule III takes legal effect for the broader market.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s 23 April final order already moved FDA-approved cannabis products and state-licensed medical cannabis into Schedule III. That partial move covers Puerto Rico’s medical dispensaries. What Julius decides is whether the rest of the market follows.

What It Means for Travelers

Nothing changes today at Puerto Rico dispensaries. Out-of-state medical cards are still recognized under Regulation 9038, and the 30-day temporary tourist card process still runs USD 20 to 50 through licensed dispensaries. Recreational possession remains illegal on the island. Federal rules on flying with cannabis, including flights between San Juan and the mainland, still apply.

If the recommended decision expands Schedule III to the wider market, the practical shifts show up over months. Section 280E tax pressure lifts for parts of the industry the April order did not reach. Banking loosens further, echoing the shift Barbados regulators pressed local banks to consider in April and the broader Caribbean banking recalibration that followed.

What to Watch

The next milestone is Julius’s recommended decision. The 20-day exceptions period runs from that date. After that, the DEA Administrator writes the final rule and publishes it in the Federal Register. Until then, Puerto Rico’s medical program keeps operating under Act 42-2017 as it has since 2017.