The DEA's proposed 2027 Aggregate Production Quotas leave every Schedule I cannabis figure unchanged from 2026. But those numbers govern federally registered research and scientific production, not the state medical cannabis market. That market has moved into new Schedule III drug categories, and the DEA says it is still registering manufacturers and distributors and determining how to calculate national production needs. No date has been given for the separate Schedule III quota announcement.
The federal government's proposed 2027 cannabis production numbers are unchanged, but the most important figures for the state medical cannabis market have not been published at all. The Drug Enforcement Administration is keeping its Schedule I cannabis quotas exactly where they were in 2026 while acknowledging that it is still registering Schedule III manufacturers and distributors and working out how to measure the country's legitimate medical cannabis needs.
The Numbers Stayed the Same. The Market Did Not.
On November 9, 2026, the DEA filed its proposed 2027 Aggregate Production Quotas (APQs) for public inspection, with publication scheduled for November 10 in the Federal Register.
The proposal, signed by DEA Administrator Terrance C. Cole, keeps the three marijuana-related Schedule I quota figures unchanged from the established 2026 amounts. The broader Schedule I table also retains a quota of 1,166,130 grams for all other tetrahydrocannabinols and establishes a separate 30-gram quota for HHC:
- Marijuana (drug code 7360): 6,675,000 grams. - Marijuana extract (drug code 7350): 1,000,000 grams. - Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (drug code 7370): 1,523,040 grams. - All other tetrahydrocannabinol: 1,166,130 grams.
HHC's line is new: the DEA assigned hexahydrocannabinol a separate Schedule I drug code in May 2026.
Delta-8 THC does not receive its own line and remains included under the category for all other tetrahydrocannabinol.
Under the proposal, any Schedule I or Schedule II substance without a listed quota remains at zero.
The figures are identical to the final 2026 quotas. But that does not mean the DEA has established the production limits for the state medical cannabis market.
Schedule I Is Research Supply, Not Your State's Medical Program
The distinction between the two federal categories is central to understanding this announcement.
The Schedule I marijuana quotas govern federally registered manufacturing of marijuana and related substances that remain in Schedule I. They do not establish production limits for qualifying medical marijuana products moved into Schedule III under the April 2026 rule.
The state-licensed medical market now falls under newly created Schedule III drug categories.
On April 28, 2026, the Attorney General issued a final rule, published at 91 FR 22714, placing FDA-approved drug products containing marijuana and drug products subject to a state medical marijuana license into Schedule III.
That rule established three new drug codes:
- 7362: Marijuana. - 7353: Marijuana extract. - 7386: Naturally derived delta-9-THC.
These are the categories established for qualifying FDA-approved marijuana products and products subject to state medical marijuana licenses. However, state licensure alone does not automatically provide federal authorization to manufacture or distribute Schedule III controlled substances — businesses must also satisfy the applicable DEA registration requirements.
But unlike the Schedule I research quotas, the Schedule III production quotas have not yet been proposed.
The DEA Says It Is Still Building the Schedule III System
The proposed 2027 notice directly addresses why the new Schedule III figures are missing.
The DEA states:
"DEA is currently in the process of registering the manufacturers and distributors who will be handling the substances that have been moved to schedule III under the CSA as outlined in the final rule."
The agency also says it is still determining how to calculate legitimate national demand:
"Concurrently, DEA is assessing data sources and methodologies to determine the most reliable and relevant datasets for the estimation of the United States' legitimate need and production requirements for these 3 substances."
The DEA confirms that the Schedule III quotas will arrive separately:
"A separate notice will be published in the Federal Register once the proposed APQs for the schedule III substances (drug codes 7362, 7353, 7386) are determined."
No publication date is provided.
The agency cites the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, specifically Articles 21, 29 and 30, as the reason production quotas are required for these new Schedule III categories.
In other words, the federal government has established the new classification for state-licensed medical cannabis products, but it has not finished building the quota system that will govern their production.
What Is the DEA Actually Measuring?
Federal law requires the DEA to establish aggregate production quotas under 21 U.S.C. 826 and 21 CFR 1303.11(b).
The stated purpose is to provide for:
"the estimated medical, scientific, research, and industrial needs of the United States, lawful export requirements, and the establishment and maintenance of reserve stocks."
The DEA formally requested information from the FDA and CDC in March 2026 and requested state Prescription Drug Monitoring Program data in April. Thirty-six states and two territories subsequently provided summarized data covering five controlled substances: fentanyl, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, oxycodone and oxymorphone.
Those state responses informed the DEA's diversion estimates for the covered substances. They were not a survey of state medical cannabis production or consumption.
The notice does not provide a marijuana-specific explanation for why the three Schedule I marijuana quotas remain unchanged. Although the DEA describes the statutory factors and general data sources used in establishing quotas, it does not publish a separate assessment of marijuana manufacturers, cannabis inventories or projected research demand to explain these particular figures.
That absence is important when considering the Schedule III process. The DEA says it is still evaluating which data sources and methodologies will provide the most reliable estimate of legitimate national need.
The Broader Rescheduling Question Is Still Separate
The new Schedule III framework should not be confused with the broader federal marijuana rescheduling proceeding.
The April 2026 rule addresses FDA-approved marijuana drug products and products subject to state medical marijuana licenses.
Marijuana outside those categories remains in Schedule I.
The broader proposal to move marijuana as a whole to Schedule III is a separate proceeding and remains pending.
That means the current quota announcement does not establish that all marijuana has moved to Schedule III, nor does it provide a production ceiling for every state cannabis market.
The federal classification now depends on which category a particular product falls under.
Psychedelics Take the Spotlight in the Same Proposal
Cannabis is not the only substance addressed in the DEA's proposed 2027 quotas.
The notice also includes substantial increases for certain psychedelics, with MDMA rising to 33,296 grams and ibogaine to 12,002 grams.
The DEA's discussion connects those increases to expanding research and clinical trials.
Marijuana Moment's November 9 coverage led with the psychedelic increases while also reporting the unchanged cannabis figures.
Public Comment Is Open, but the Medical Quotas Still Have No Date
The proposed 2027 quota notice is not a final order.
Comments may be submitted through regulations.gov under Docket No. DEA-1730P. If the notice is published as scheduled on November 10, the 30-day comment period will end December 10, 2026. The final deadline will be confirmed in the published notice.
A final order establishing the 2027 quotas will follow.
Until the separate notice arrives, the actual Schedule III quota figures remain unknown.
Sources
- DEA. “Proposed Aggregate Production Quotas for Schedule I and II Controlled Substances and Assessment of Annual Needs for the List I Chemicals Ephedrine, Pseudoephedrine, and Phenylpropanolamine for 2027.” Federal Register Document 2026-22843, Docket No. DEA-1730P (filed November 9, 2026; published November 10, 2026). Link
- DEA. “Established Aggregate Production Quotas for Schedule I and II Controlled Substances and Assessment of Annual Needs for 2026.” Federal Register Document 2025-24277, 91 FR 287 (January 5, 2026).
- Attorney General. “Rescheduling of FDA Approved Products Containing Marijuana From Schedule I to Schedule III.” 91 FR 22714 (April 28, 2026).
- Marijuana Moment. “DEA Boosts Psychedelic Production Quotas For 2027 While Previewing Separate Marijuana Proposal Under Rescheduling.” November 9, 2026.
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