The Office of the Pardon Attorney (PARDON), which operates under the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), recently published its FY 2025 President’s Budget Submission. PARDON is responsible for carrying out instructions related to the executive clemency process, which includes reviewing and investigating clemency applications, as well as issuing recommendations to the president. 

For next year, PARDON is requesting $12,568,000 in funds, which would go toward funding 40 additional positions (including 26 attorneys) “to achieve its mission of advising and assisting the president in the exercise of the executive clemency power conferred to him by Article III, Section 2 of the Constitution.”

Among various listed upcoming challenges is the recent increase in clemency applications. The report stated that prior to FY 2014, and especially during the 1990s, PARDON only included 11 staff positions, which was enough to tackle the 600 applications that would come in annually. However, between FY 2012-FY 2023, PARDON received 52,065 applications.

PARDON is hoping to increase its resources further due to this increase in applications specifically related to cannabis. “PARDON expects to continue to receive incoming clemency cases, both pursuant to ordinary case submissions—which historically increase in proximity to presidential elections—and to the President’s October 2022 and December 2023 Proclamations pardoning individuals convicted of simple possession of marijuana,” the report stated.

The report continued to explain the status of the agency, noting that as of February 2024, only 171 pardon certificates were issued, and a total of 184 since 2023. PARDON explained that certificates are issued only after a thorough case investigation has been conducted.

However, with an increase in funds, PARDON seeks to increase the rate at which cases are conducted. “The FY 2025 request will allow PARDON to both continue to review and address pending clemency cases, receive new ones, evaluate capital cases, and process the influx of submissions pursuant to the two Presidential Proclamations on marijuana,” PARDON stated.

Furthermore, PARDON is setting a goal of increasing its “Percentage of marijuana certificates issued to eligible recipients within 30 days of application receipt,” to 80% in FY 2024.

President Joe Biden initially announced that he would be pardoning federal cannabis prisoners in October 2022, and also promised that the White House would “review expeditiously” the current classification of cannabis. The DOJ began to conduct investigations for pardon applications in March 2023, but didn’t begin issuing pardon certificates until after September 2023 under Biden’s order. It also held a public comment period between March 2023 and August 2023, in order to gather information on how to “expeditiously” act on Biden’s order to grant pardons related to simple cannabis possession.

In December 2023, Biden pardoned 11 people who held non-violent cannabis convictions and expanded his pardon initiative to include offenses that occurred on federal property. “America was founded on the principle of equal justice under law. Elected officials on both sides of the aisle, faith leaders, civil rights advocates, and law enforcement leaders agree that our criminal justice system can and should reflect this core value that makes our communities safer and stronger,” Biden said. “That is why today I am announcing additional steps I am taking to make the promise of equal justice a reality.”

Much more recently in March, Vice President Kamala Harris hosted a weed policy reform summit where she said that the current schedule of cannabis is “absurd” and called for it to be rescheduled as soon as possible. The summit was attended by rapper Fat Joe, recently pardoned advocate Chris Goldstein, and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. “I hope everyone can recognize the importance of Vice President Harris calling to “legalize marijuana” in a room that Richard Nixon built = huge,” Goldstein posted on X.

Amidst a shift in promises for cannabis rescheduling or a lifting of federal prohibition, legislators are still calling on Biden to commute the sentences of all federal cannabis prisoners. A total of 36 legislators signed a letter to Biden on March 14, inquiring about Biden’s 2020 campaign pledge to decriminalize cannabis on a federal level. “Until the day Congress sends you a marijuana reform bill to sign, you have a unique ability to lead on criminal justice reform and provide immediate relief to thousands of Americans,” the letter stated. “It is inconsistent for the federal government to keep punishing individuals for violating a ban that it does not actually support and that an overwhelming majority of Americans oppose on a bipartisan basis… We ask that you commute the prison sentences of all individuals who are incarcerated for federal marijuana offenses.”

Some governors are continuing to push for cannabis-related pardons, such as Massachusetts Gov. Maura T. Healey. In mid-March Healey announced her plans to pardon cannabis misdemeanors. She said it “would be the most comprehensive action by a governor since President Joe Biden pardoned federal marijuana possession convictions and called on governors to take similar actions in their states,” and that it “could impact hundreds of thousands of people.”

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President Joe Biden issued his State of the Union address on Thursday, March 7, and among many topics, he said he’ll direct his Cabinet to consider reclassifying cannabis at the federal level. It’s the first time that a president of the United States addressed cannabis reform as part of his State of the Union address.

“Keep building public trust, as I’ve been doing by taking executive action on police reform, and calling for it to be the law of the land, directing my Cabinet to review the federal classification of marijuana, and expunging thousands of convictions  for mere possession, because no one should be jailed for using or possessing marijuana!” Biden said.

Biden also posted on X that “no one should be jailed for using or possessing marijuana,” which prompted responses from people who pushed for real expungements—not the mostly meaningless wave of pardons to people with minor cannabis convictions issued by Biden in 2022.

Biden issued two executive orders in October 2022, pardoning some people with nonviolent federal cannabis records, and he asked the Department of Health and Human Services to evaluate if cannabis should be rescheduled under the Controlled Substances Act.

The US Cannabis Council (USCC) launched in 2021 with a goal to build better access to an equitable and values-driven industry. The USCC has been working hard to advance federal cannabis legalization and promote restorative justice to the people harmed the most by the War on Drugs.

“The US Cannabis Council applauds President Biden for highlighting cannabis reform as an issue of national concern during his State of the Union address,” David Culver, SVP of Public Affairs at the USCC said in a statement obtained by High Times. “The President has issued historic pardons for nonviolent cannabis offenses and initiated a groundbreaking review of the status of cannabis under federal law. Tonight’s remarks before a national audience signal the President’s ongoing commitment to advancing cannabis reform. We are encouraged by what we heard this evening and optimistic that the Biden Administration will move cannabis down to Schedule III this year.” 

“President Biden made history tonight by addressing cannabis reform during the State of the Union,” said Adam Goers, co-chair, Coalition for Cannabis Scheduling Reform. The President is committed to modernizing the federal government’s approach to cannabis, and he reinforced that commitment tonight in front of the American people. Moving cannabis down to Schedule III would represent an historic shift in our nation’s drug laws. We thank the President for his remarks and urge his Administration to push ahead with rescheduling.” 

Cannabis Pardons and President Biden

Thousands of people received one of Biden’s pardons for federal cannabis possession convictions under two announcements issued in 2022 and in February. The Justice Department issued certificates to eligible people who applied for the pardons, but the certificates actually read “the pardon means that you’re forgiven, but you still have a criminal record.”

Former prisoner Weldon Angelos corrected Biden’s comment, adding that possession generally never leads to jail time alone. “Nobody goes to jail for use or simple possession,” Angelos posted on X. “But those imprisoned federally for marijuana felonies shouldn’t be forced to serve out the remainder of their decades long sentences either so please commute their sentences as you promised when you were running for president. 

Before Thursday’s State of the Union address, The Sentencing Project urged President Biden to remember his 2020 campaign promises to oppose mandatory minimum sentences and significantly reduce the prison population.

“America surpassed the grim milestone of 50 years of mass incarceration, with the prison population growing nearly 500% since 1973,” said Kara Gotsch, executive director for The Sentencing Project. “Today, almost 2 million individuals, and disproportionately Black Americans, are incarcerated in our nation’s prisons and jails. The U.S. incarcerates more of its citizens—for longer periods of time—than any other major democratic country in the world.” 

“President Biden promised four years ago to reduce federal incarceration levels by 50% and to oppose mandatory minimum sentences. We urge the president to keep those promises, and to scale up solutions that actually make communities safer, such as good schools, affordable childcare, broadly accessible mental health services, more effective and widely available substance use treatment programs, and more support for vulnerable children and youth. 

“Americans deserve safety, security, and community-based solutions that will build up our communities and actually stop the cycle of crime. We can get there if we put evidence-based solutions over politics, thriving communities over extreme sentences, and rehabilitation over punishment.”

In addition, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand told High Times last that rescheduling cannabis under schedule III would do little by simply moving it to a less restrictive category. A recent survey found broad support across demographics and suggested Biden could see an 11% favorability boost if it occurs.

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Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers on Friday announced dozens of new pardons, including nine for individuals previously convicted for cannabis-related offenses.

“There is power in redemption and forgiveness, especially for folks who’ve been working to move beyond their past mistakes to be productive, positive members of their communities,” Evers said in a statement. “I’m grateful for being able to give a second chance to these individuals who’ve worked hard to do just that.”

Evers, the first-term Democrat, has now “granted more pardons during his first three years in office than any other governor in contemporary history,” according to a release from his office, which said that he has granted a total of 498 pardons since taking office in 2019.

The nine individuals previously busted for pot-related offenses who received a pardon on Friday include Danielle Arrigo, who “was 22 when she twice sold marijuana to a confidential informant,” and “now resides in Burlington with her daughter and has earned her associate degree.”

There was also Jeremy Busch, who “was pulled over for suspected drunk driving” 22 years ago when “police discovered he had been drinking and smoking marijuana.” Busch was 18 at that time.

“Now 22 years later, he resides in Genoa City and has obtained an associate and bachelor’s degree in the fields of civil engineering and architecture, graduating magna cum laude,” according to the governor’s office.

Per the Friday announcement from Evers’s office, the following individuals with marijuana-related convictions were also pardoned: “Christina Darby was 22 when officers found marijuana in her home. She has since moved to California with her children, earned an associate degree, and works as a property manager.”; “Gary Davis, Jr. was around 20 years old when he was found in possession of marijuana and other controlled substances. Three decades later, he now resides in Madison and has worked as a youth/juvenile counselor with local social services organizations.”; “Henry Hong was 20 when he sold a controlled substance and was also found in possession of marijuana and a stolen pistol. He now resides in Raeford, North Carolina, where he owns a restaurant and has earned a master’s degree.”; “John Jezuit was a teenager when he punched someone while on probation for selling marijuana. Nearly two decades later, he now resides in Madison and has earned his bachelor’s degree in social welfare.”; “Travis Nelson was 18 when he sold marijuana to a confidential informant. He now resides in Denmark with his family and founded his own trucking business over 13 years ago.”; “Lawrence Riche was 20 when officers found marijuana in his residence, and several years later, he was again found with marijuana, controlled substances, and firearms. Now 40 years later, he resides in Menomonee Falls, has remained sober, and has maintained long-term employment as a steamfitter.” 

As the governor’s announcement on Friday explained, a pardon “does not expunge court records,” but it is “an official act of forgiveness that restores rights lost when someone is convicted of a felony, including the right to serve on a jury, hold public office, and hold certain professional licenses.”

For Evers, who is up for re-election this year, the pardons are consistent with repeated calls for cannabis reform in the Badger State. Last year, Evers’ budget proposal included a plan to legalize medical and recreational cannabis use, both of which are against the law in Wisconsin.

In February, Evers vetoed a Republican-backed measure that would have instituted new penalties in Wisconsin for manufacturing and distributing cannabis or resin by butane extraction.

“It is widely accepted, and, indeed, research over the course of the last decade confirms, that marijuana criminalization has had a disproportionate impact on communities of color, especially in Wisconsin where have long-standing racial disparities in incarceration rates,” Evers said in his veto statement at the time.

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Colorado Governor Jared Polis rang in 2022 with a pardon party.

Last Thursday, the governor’s office announced that he had “granted three commutations, 15 individual pardons, and signed an executive order granting 1,351 pardons for convictions of possession of two ounces or less of marijuana.”

The move was made possible by legislation that Polis signed in May, which “authorized the Governor to grant pardons to a class of defendants who were convicted of the possession of up to two ounces of marijuana.”

“Adults can legally possess marijuana in Colorado, just as they can beer or wine. It’s unfair that 1,351 additional Coloradans had permanent blemishes on their record that interfered with employment, credit, and gun ownership, but today we have fixed that by pardoning their possession of small amounts of marijuana that occurred during the failed prohibition era,” Polis said in a statement.

Signed into law by Polis on May 20 of last year, the bill increased “the amount of marijuana that adults 21 and older in Colorado can legally possess from one ounce to two ounces,” and built upon the 2012 voter-passed constitutional amendment legalizing recreational cannabis, which gave the governor such authorization.

The governor’s office said in a press release that individuals “who are unsure whether a conviction on their record has been pardoned may fill out a form to request confirmation of a pardon on the Colorado Bureau of Investigations website.”

Colorado has been a trailblazer for the legalization movement in the United States, becoming the first state (along with Washington) to end the prohibition on pot in 2012. Since then, restorative justice measures have become a fixture of new cannabis laws, with previous low-level offenders receiving pardons.

The governor’s office said that the cannabis pardon “applies to state-level convictions of possession for two ounces or less of marijuana, as identified by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI),” and that “individuals who have these convictions did not need to apply for pardons, and the Governor’s Office has not conducted individual assessments of the people who have been pardoned through this process. Individuals convicted of municipal marijuana crimes, or individuals arrested or issued a summons without a conviction, are not included in the pardon.”

The new year will bring some tighter restrictions to Colorado’s medical cannabis laws, however. The Denver Post reported in November that the state’s Department of Revenue “will limit the daily purchase to two ounces of flower and eight grams of concentrate such as wax and shatter for medical marijuana patients,” and that it will drop two grams per day for patients aged 18 to 20.

Per the Denver Post, the Department of Revenue unveiled the rules after “several months of deliberation over how to execute a new state law meant largely to limit young people’s access to and abuse of high-potency THC products.”

The newspaper reported that there are exceptions to the new rules, but they apply “to a patient whose doctor affirms in writing that the patient has a physical or geographic hardship that should allow them to exceed the daily purchase limits, and that the patient has designated a store as the primary place they get their medicine.”

The limits were made possible after lawmakers passed a bill that created a task force to produce new rules.

The bill was sponsored by Democratic state House Representative Yadira Caraveo, a pediatrician, who said that she wanted to ensure that young people cannot “get their hands on an incredible amount of products and very concentrated products that they can then give or sell to people their age or younger who don’t yet have access to legal market because they’re not 21.”

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Decrying “over a century of failed and racist cannabis policies,” Elizabeth Warren and a pair of other Democratic senators are urging President Joe Biden to use his executive authority to “pardon all individuals convicted of nonviolent cannabis offenses, whether formerly or currently incarcerated.”

Warren, the senior senator from Massachusetts, made the request in a letter to Biden on Tuesday. Warren’s fellow senator from the Bay State, Ed Markey, and Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley also signed the letter. 

“America’s cannabis policies have punished Black and Brown communities for too long. Beginning at the turn of the 20th century, states enacted anti-cannabis laws to specifically target Mexican immigrants and Mexican Americans,” the three senators wrote. “By 1937, the battle against cannabis—buoyed by a high-profile campaign relying on racist tropes—had escalated to a federal ban. 

“In the 1970s, President Nixon launched the War on Drugs over the objections of his own advisors and experts, spawning mass incarceration policies with devastating effects on Black and Brown families. Today, despite legalization efforts across the country and roughly equal cannabis usage rates, Black Americans are still nearly four times as likely to be arrested for cannabis possession as white Americans.”

The Democratic trio also came with receipts, pointing to the mounds of polling data showing record numbers of Americans in support of marijuana legalization.

“These policies are increasingly out of step with the views of the American public. Nearly seven in 10 Americans believe that cannabis should be legalized,” the senators wrote. “Eighteen states, two territories and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for recreational use, all in the past decade.

“Twenty-seven states—ranging from New York to North Dakota—plus D.C. have decriminalized the possession of small amounts of cannabis,” they continued. “Thirty-six states, three territories and D.C. have allowed for the medical use of cannabis. And a number of tribal governments have legalized cannabis for various purposes.”

But despite all that evidence of robust public approval for marijuana reform, Biden has thus far balked at the idea of outright legalization. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in July that the president remains opposed to lifting the prohibition on pot.

However, on the campaign trail last year, Biden had said that he supports decriminalizing marijuana, as well as expunging the records and releasing from jail individuals who had been convicted of pot.

Warren and her colleagues noted that campaign pledge in their letter to Biden on Tuesday.

“Our country’s cannabis policies must be completely overhauled, but you have the power to act now: you can and should issue a blanket pardon for all non-violent federal cannabis offenses, fulfilling your promises to the American people and transforming the lives of tens of thousands of Americans,” they wrote. 

“As a candidate for President, you argued that, ‘We should decriminalize marijuana,’ and, ‘Everyone [with a marijuana record] should be let out of jail, their records expunged, be completely zeroed out.’ The first and simplest step in the process is a blanket pardon. The Constitution grants you the authority to pardon broad classes of Americans to correct widespread injustice, as previous presidents have done. 

“Most importantly, such a pardon—combined with your leadership on an accessible expungement process to formally clear the criminal records of those affected—would mark the beginning of a reversal of decades of ineffective and discriminatory cannabis policies, allowing Americans to return to their communities, find housing and jobs and rebuild their lives without the burdens of an unjustly imposed criminal record.”

The senators called on President Biden to once and for all make good on the campaign promise he made on the campaign trail. “We urge you to act swiftly on behalf of the countless Americans punished by the country’s senseless cannabis laws,” they added. “Thank you for your attention to this important matter.”

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