Controlled Substances Act Appendix
In an effort to enact an organized drug regulatory strategy, the Controlled Substances Act, Title II of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act, was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1970. This act replaced the Harrison Narcotic Act of 1914 and has been amended considerably since its inception. Both the legal and illicit distribution and manufacture of narcotics, stimulants, depressants, hallucinogens, and anabolic steroids are regulated by the CSA. As proscribed by the CSA, these substances are categorized into five schedules according to their potential for abuse and their medicinal value. As in other federal regulations, the act allows for changes in which substances can be added, decontrolled, removed, or transferred.
The process by which a drug is scheduled lies in the hands of the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services, and/or by petition from an interested party that would be subsequently reviewed by the DEA. As a part of the review, the DEA requests health information from the HHS, which itself collects information from the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and often, the scientific community at large in order to report a final recommendation to the DEA. The FDA is compelled to refer the drug to DEA for scheduling should it discover that the drug has abuse potential. The FDA offers a recommendation to the DEA, and the DEA invariably accepts the recommendation and schedules the drug accordingly.
If the FDA recommends not to schedule a drug, then the DEA is powerless to schedule the drug on its own. This occurred in the case of the synthetic opioid tramadol (Ultram), which has a very low abuse potential. The administrator of the DEA then compiles all available data in addition to the HHS recommendation and makes a final decision as to the control of the substance and its appropriate schedule. Power lies with the administrator to emergency schedule drugs that are analogs of currently controlled substances until Congress can pass a related amendment. Once scheduled, the handling of such controlled substances is closely supervised by the DEA through a manufacturer, and distributor/practitioner registration process.
The scheduled listings are updated and reviewed annually and are currently described by the following parameters: actual or relative potential for abuse; scientific evidence of its pharmacological effect, if known; state of current scientific knowledge regarding the drug or other substance; history and current pattern of abuse; scope, duration, and significance of abuse; risk to the public health; psychic or physiological dependence liability; and whether or not the substance is an immediate precursor of a substance already controlled under this subchapter.
Drugs included in Schedule I are those deemed to have a significant potential for abuse with psychological or physical dependence liability. These drugs have no recognized medical use and cannot be prescribed by a physician despite what state laws allow. Federal law always supersedes state laws. This comes into play in states that in the past several years have enacted medical marijuana statutes. According to federal law, there is no such thing as medical marijuana, and any doctor who prescribes it commits a felony under the CSA. Physicians and scientists are required to receive special permission from the FDA or DEA in order to conduct or participate in research protocols involving Schedule I substances. One such study is that involving marijuana for the treatment of wasting syndrome in AIDS patients. Some examples of Schedule I drugs are heroin, marijuana, LSD, peyote,
| Federal Drug Trafficking Penalties* |
| *Does not include marijuana, hashish, or hash oil |
| SOURCE Drug Enforcement Agency. <www.dea.gov> |
| Drug/Schedule | Quantity | Penalties | Quantity | Penalties |
| Cocaine (Schedule I) | 500–4999 gms | First Offense:
Not less than 5 years, and not more than 40 yrs. If death or serious injury, not less than 20 or more than life. Fine of not more than $2 million if an individual, $5 million if not an individual.
Second Offense: Not less than 10 yrs, and not more than life. If death or serious injury, life imprisonment. Fine of not more than $4 million if an individual, $10 million if not an individual. | 5 kgs or more | First Offense:
Not less than 10 years, and not more than life. If death or serious injury, not less than 20 or more than life. Fine of not more than $4 million if an individual, $10 million if not an individual.
Second Offense: Not less than 20 yrs, and not more than life. If death or serious injury, life imprisonment. Fine of not more than $8 million if an individual, $20 million if not an individual. |
| Cocaine Base (Schedule I) | 5–49 gms mixture | 50 gms or more mixture |
| Fentanyl (Schedule I) | 40–399 gms mixture | 400 gms or more mixture |
| Fentanyl Analogue (Schedule I) | 10–99 gms mixture | 100 gms or more mixture |
| Heroin (Schedule I) | 100–999 gms mixture | 1 kg or more mixture |
| LSD (Schedule I) | 1–9 gms mixture | 10 gms or more mixture |
| Methamphetamine (Schedule II) | 5–49 gms pure or 50–499 gms mixture | 50 gms or more pure or 500 gms or more mixture |
| PCP (Schedule I) | 10–99 gms pure or 100–999 gms mixture | 100 gm or more pure or 1kg or more mixture |
| Penalties | | | | |
| Other Schedule I and II drugs | Any amount | First Offense: Not more than 20 yrs. If death or serious injury, not less than 20 yrs, or more than life. Fine $1 million if an individual, $5 million if not an individual.
Second Offense: Not more than 30 yrs. If death or serious injury, not less than life. Fine $2 million if an individual, $10 million if not an individual. |
| Flunitrazepam (Schedule IV) | 1 gms |
| Other Schedule III drugs | Any amount | First Offense: Not more than 5 years. Fine not more than $250,000 if an individual, $1 million if not an individual.
Second Offense: Not more than 10 yrs. Fine not more than $500,000 if an individual, $2 million if not an individual. |
| Flunitrazepam (Schedule IV) | 30 or more mgs |
| All other Schedule IV drugs | Any amount | First Offense: Not more than 3 years. Fine not more than $250,000 if an individual, $1 million if not an individual.
Second Offense: Not more than 6 yrs. Fine not more than $500,000 if an individual, $2 million if not an individual. |
| Flunitrazepam (Schedule IV) | Less than 30 mgs |
| All Schedule V drugs | Any amount | First Offense: Not more than 1 yr. Fine not more than $100,000 if an individual, $250,000 if not an individual.
Second Offense: Not more than 2 yrs. Fine not more than $200,000 if an individual, $500,000 if not an individual. |
mescaline, psilocybin, tetrahydrocannabinols, ketobemidone, levomoramide, racemoramide, benrylmorphine, dihydromorphine, nicocodeine, and nicomorphine.
Schedule II drugs are determined to have a high potential for abuse with psychological or physical dependence liability. In this category, the drug or other substance has a currently accepted medical use as disease treatment in the United States or a currently accepted medical use with severe restrictions. This category contains most of the opioid analgesics used in the treatment of pain and is regulated through rules such as single-fill prescriptions. This is the most tightly regulated category of drugs approved for medical use. Some examples of Schedule II controlled narcotic substances are opium, morphine, hydromorphone (Dilaudid), methadone (Dolophine), pantopon, meperidine (Demerol), cocaine, oxycodone (Percodan), Anileridine (Leritine), and oxymorphone (Numorphan). Also in Schedule II are amphetamine (Benzedrine, Dexedrine), methamphetamine (Desoxyn), phenmetrazine (Preludin), methylphenidate (Ritalin), amobarbital, pentobarbital, secobarbital, methaqualone, etorphine hydrochloride, diphenoxylate, and phencyclidine.
Substances categorized as Schedule III have a less significant abuse potential than those in Schedules I and II; however, abuse of these drugs may lead to moderate or low physical dependence or high psychological dependence. These substances include compounds containing limited quantities of certain narcotic drugs, and non-narcotic drugs such as derivatives of barbituric acid except those that are listed in another schedule, glutethimide (Doriden), methyprylon (Nodular), chlorhexadol, sulfondiethyl-methane, sulfomethane, nalorphine, benzphetamine, chlorphentermine, clortermine, mazindol, phendimetrazine, and paregoric. Other drugs in this category include codeine and hydrocodone (Vicodin).
The drugs in Schedule IV have a relatively low abuse potential and risk for psychological or physical dependence relative to those listed in Schedule III and include such drugs as barbital, phenobarbital, methylphenobarbital, chloral betaine (Beta Chlor), chloral hydrate, ethchlorvynol (Placidyl), ethinamate (Valmid), meprobamate (Equanil, Miltown), paraldehyde, methohexital, fenfluramine, diethyipropion, phentermine, chlordiazepoxide (Librium), diazepam (Valium), oxazepam (Serax), clorazepate (Tranxene), flurazepam (Dalmane), clonazepam (Clonopin), prazepam (Verstran), lorazepam (Ativan), mebutamate, and dextropropoxyphene (Darvon).
Drugs in Schedule V are generally reserved for anti-tussive and antidiarrheal purposes with the least potential for abuse of the scheduled substances.
Penalties for possession, manufacture, and distribution vary widely under the CSA (see federal trafficking penalty chart). Penalties for violations involving Schedule I and II drugs naturally are more severe than other classifications. At the U.S. Attorney's (federal prosecutor) discretion, lesser federal charges of simple possession can be brought in extenuating circumstances. Beginning in July 2000, federal financial aid applications require that students certify they have not been convicted of any drug-related offense to qualify for support. If convicted, the student loses eligibility for federal financial aid for a minimum of one year. The evolution of the CSA is one that involves many informed parties and is subject to dynamic growth and change as we learn more about the potential dangers and benefits of emerging and existing substances.
| Federal Marijuana Trafficking Penalties |
| SOURCE: Drug Enforcement Agency. <www.dea.gov> |
| Drug | Quantity | 1st Offense | 2nd Offense |
| Marijuana | 1,000 kg or more mixture; or 1,000 or more plants | Not less than 10 years, not more than life
If death or serious injury, not less than 20 years not more than life.
Fine not more than $4 million if an individual, $10 million if other than an individual. | Not less than 20 years, not more than life
If death or serious injury, mandatory life.
Fine not more than $8 million if an individual, $20 million if other than an individual. |
| Marijuana | 100 kg to 999 kg mixture; or 100 to 999 plants | Not less than 5 years, not more than 40 years
If death or serious injury, not less than 20 years, not more than life.
Fine not more than $2 million if an individual, $5 million if other than an individual. | Not less than 10 years, not more than life
If death or serious injury, mandatory life.
Fine not more than $4 million if an individual, $10 million if other than an individual. |
| Marijuana | 10 kg or more hashish; 50 to 99 kg mixture; 1 kg or more hashish oil; 50 to 99 plants | Not more than 20 years
If death or serious injury, not less than 20 years not more than life.
Fine not more than $1 million if an individual, $5 million if other than an individual. | Not more than 30 years
If death or serious injury, mandatory life. Fine not more than $2 million if an individual, $10 million if other than an individual. |
| Marijuana | 1 to 49 plants; less than 50 kg mixture | Not more than 5 years
Fine not more than $250,000, $1 million if other than an individual | Not more than 10 years
Fine not more than $500,000, $2 million if other than an individual |
| Hashish | 10 kg or less |
| Hashish Oil | 1 kg or less |
Ronald J. Brogan
New York City Bureau Chief, D.A.R.E America
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