H.R. 8394 — Higher Education Marijuana Research Act of 2026

This section amends factors considered by the Attorney General in registering applicants under the Controlled Substances Act to manufacture or distribute marijuana for research by adding as a priority whether the applicant is an institution of higher education or a state or local government entity. This section requires the Attorney General, through the Drug Enforcement Administration, to submit to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, not later than 180 days after enactment and annually thereafter, a report on applications for such registrations received in the prior year—including the number disaggregated by applicant type (private entity, institution of higher education, or state or local government entity), status of each application, reasons for any denials, and (with applicant consent) applicant names. This section authorizes an institution of higher education located in a state or on tribal land where marijuana sale or use is lawful to obtain or purchase marijuana from a state or tribal government marijuana regulatory body or from a state or tribal law enforcement agency for biological, chemical, agricultural, or public health research—including studies on marijuana types in state marketplaces, public health effects of state marijuana policies, and potential medical benefits. Marijuana obtained from a state or tribal law enforcement agency may not be administered to individuals. This section provides that covered students (i.e., part- or full-time undergraduate, graduate, or post-graduate enrollees), covered researchers (i.e., institution employees assisting approved research), and sponsoring institutions of higher education are not ineligible for federal student aid, other federal funding, or federal funds due to participation in or sponsorship of covered research (i.e., approved marijuana research, including administration, but excluding student consumption) conducted in a controlled setting (i.e., approved by the institution's internal research review authority). Such participation also does not impact the immigration status of covered students or researchers.

This section directs the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Administrator to establish, not later than 90 days after enactment, an Office of University Relations to (1) provide technical assistance to researchers and institutions of higher education seeking DEA registration under the Controlled Substances Act to manufacture, distribute, or dispense controlled substances; and (2) develop technology enabling such applicants to amend applications prior to submission. (Thus, the office streamlines the registration process required for marijuana research, which is a Schedule I controlled substance.)

This section requires the Director of the National Institutes of Health to establish, not later than 180 days after enactment, a working group—including two appointees each from the National Institutes of Health, Food and Drug Administration, and Drug Enforcement Administration, plus two appointees from institutions of higher education with prior marijuana research experience—to develop recommendations on simplifying the registration process for marijuana studies at such institutions. Not later than one year after enactment, the working group must submit a report to the House Committees on Education and Workforce, Energy and Commerce, and Judiciary and the Senate Committees on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and Judiciary summarizing the status of U.S. marijuana research at institutions of higher education and listing recommendations to improve academic study of marijuana.

This section establishes a grant program within the National Institute of Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study marijuana for potential medical benefits, requiring the NIH director to create the program not later than 90 days after enactment. The director may award competitive grants to qualified institutions of higher education for projects studying marijuana for medical or public health purposes, prioritizing institutions in states or on tribal lands where marijuana is legal for recreational or medical use while accounting for geographic diversity and minority-serving status. The section authorizes $15 million for each of FY2026 through FY2030.

This section directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish, not later than 90 days after enactment, a competitive grant program for institutions of higher education to study marijuana for agricultural purposes (i.e., conservation and growth techniques, impacts on other crops, and effects of different marijuana strains on other crops). The Secretary must prioritize grants to institutions in states or tribal lands where marijuana is legal for recreational or medical use, accounting for geographic diversity and minority-serving status. The section authorizes $15 million for each of FY2026 through FY2030.

This section clarifies that Article 28 of the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs—which generally restricts non-medical cannabis cultivation except under limited conditions—does not prohibit or impose additional restrictions on research involving marijuana or its manufacture, distribution, or dispensing if conducted in accordance with the Controlled Substances Act, this Act, and amendments made by this Act.

This section establishes definitions for purposes of the Act, including (1) "institution of higher education" as having the meaning given in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001); (2) "minority institution" as having the meaning given in section 365 of that Act (20 U.S.C. 1067k); and (3) "State" to mean any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, or any U.S. territory.