weed is illegal under federal law. its against federal law to posses a firearm while being an illegal drug user.
Incorrect
In Illinois, cannabis users are no longer considered illegal drug users, and can own firearms:
Although Cannabis Consumers Who Own Firearms Are Federal Felons, Illinois Says They Can Keep Their Guns
The Illinois State Police confirms that people who try newly legal marijuana are not considered "unlawful users" of narcotics.
JACOB SULLUM | 1.2.2020 1:30 PM
Cannabis consumers in Illinois, where state-licensed marijuana dispensaries
started serving recreational customers yesterday, will
pay more in taxes than cannabis consumers in most other states that have legalized pot. But at least they do not have to worry that the state police will be coming for their guns, thanks to protections included in the 2019 law that allows adults 21 or older to purchase and use marijuana.
Federal law
prohibits gun possession by any "unlawful user" of a controlled substance, including marijuana. When you buy a firearm from a federally licensed dealer, you have to fill out a
form that asks, "Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance?" The question includes a warning that "the use or possession of marijuana remains unlawful under Federal law regardless of whether it has been legalized or decriminalized for medicinal or recreational purposes in the state where you reside."
A cannabis consumer who possesses a gun is committing a federal felony
punishable by up to 10 years in prison. A cannabis consumer who answers "no" to the question about illegal drug use while buying a gun is committing another federal felony,
punishable by up to five years in prison.
Illinois likewise
prohibits anyone who has used an illegal drug during the past year from obtaining a firearm owner's identification (FOID) card, which is required to legally own a gun in that state. But the Illinois
Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act, which the state legislature passed last year,
says "a person shall not be considered an unlawful user…solely as a result of his or her possession or use of cannabis or cannabis paraphernalia in accordance with this Act." This week the Illinois State Police (ISP), which oversees the FOID program,
confirmed in a Facebook post that, notwithstanding
news reports to the contrary, it will not revoke cards "based solely on a person's legal use of adult use cannabis."
The ISP added that it "will revoke FOID cards where it is demonstrated that an individual is addicted to or is a habitual user of cannabis" (whatever that means). It also warned that "the use of cannabis is still considered to be illegal by the Federal government," and "the purchase of a firearm from a federally licensed firearms dealer is governed by Federal law." So are the possession of firearms and purchases from private sellers, although the ISP did not mention that.
What about the risk that buying marijuana from a state-licensed retailer will tip off the feds? The Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act
says that "any identifying or personal information of a [marijuana] purchaser obtained or received in accordance with this Section shall not be retained, used, shared or disclosed for any purpose except as authorized by this Act." Because of that provision,
says Ed Sullivan, a former state legislator who is now a lobbyist for the Illinois State Rifle Association, "no cannabis dispensary can share your personal information, unless you authorize them, [with] anyone or any entity. This includes the Illinois State Police (ISP) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF)."
Sullivan warns, however, that the federal government may have access to information about Illinois patients who participate in the state's pre-existing
medical marijuana program. "While Illinois treats cannabis as a prescribed drug, the Federal Government considers cannabis to be a Schedule I narcotic," he writes. "As such, the Federal Government could gain access to your records as a Medical Cannabis User and therefore jeopardize your right to purchase a firearm from a Federal Firearm License[e]."
