Last year ended on a very high note for the cannabis industry. In late December, from behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Attorney General to complete the marijuana rescheduling process in the “most expeditious manner.”

The aim of Trump’s executive order is to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, which would be the most significant change to the nation’s drug laws since President Nixon signed the Controlled Substances Act in 1970. The change in classification will not legalize weed, but it will give the cannabis industry a big tax break worth billions of dollars.

While the $32 billion cannabis industry rejoiced at the historic move, the process will not be quick. Marijuana is still categorized as a Schedule I drug, alongside heroin and LSD. If the federal government completes the process, marijuana will be reclassified as a Schedule III drug, which is used for drugs with accepted medical benefits that still have addiction potential, including steroids, ketamine and Tylenol with codeine.

Schedule III drugs, however, are still considered controlled substances, which means restrictions will remain on cannabis’ manufacture, sales and possession. And the patchwork of regulated markets across 40 states that allow medical sales and 25 that permit recreational sales will still be in conflict with federal law. The timeline for rescheduling........

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