Perfect Union Welcomes Historic DOJ Cannabis Rescheduling, Calls Move a Lifeline for California Dispensaries
SACRAMENTO, Calif., April 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Perfect Union, one of California’s largest independent cannabis retailers, today welcomed the U.S. Department of Justice’s announcement issuing an order immediately placing FDA-approved marijuana products and marijuana products regulated under qualifying state-issued medical marijuana licenses into Schedule III, while initiating an expedited process to consider broader rescheduling of marijuana, with hearings set to begin June 29.
Earlier today, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche signed an order initiating the rescheduling, with an expedited DEA hearing on broader rescheduling set to begin June 29. The move removes state-licensed medical cannabis operators from the reach of IRS Code 280E, which has for years prohibited cannabis businesses from deducting ordinary business expenses such as rent, payroll, and marketing — pushing effective federal tax rates above 70% for many California retailers.
The news lands on the heels of record-setting 4/20 sales for Perfect Union. Across the company’s California footprint, the two-day 4/20 sale event (April 19–20, 2026) delivered 38% more transactions, 42% more units sold, and 27% higher gross sales year-over-year compared to 2025— with gross receipts up more than 28% year-over-year. At Perfect Union’s flagship store in Northside Sacramento — already ranked by BDSA as the highest daily revenue-generating dispensary storefront in California year-to-date in 2026 — two-day 4/20 unit sales grew 25% year-over-year, and net sales grew 7% over the same store’s record 2025 performance.
With eleven locations across the state, Perfect Union is among the most visible independent operators in a California market that has contracted sharply over the past three years under the combined weight of 280E, state excise taxes, and an aggressive illicit market.
“Today’s announcement from the Department of Justice is the most meaningful federal acknowledgment California’s legal cannabis industry has received in a generation,” said Thomas Sheridan, CEO of MWG Holdings Group Inc., parent company of Perfect Union. “For years, dispensaries in this state have been taxed in an unsustainable way under 280E — unable to deduct basic business expenses like rent, payroll, and marketing that every other retailer in America takes for granted. Moving state-licensed medical cannabis to Schedule III finally breaks that penalty. The tax relief this unlocks is real, it is immediate, and it could be the difference between survival and closure for small and mid-sized California operators who have been fighting just to keep their doors open.”
Sheridan said the timing of the federal action is especially meaningful for Perfect Union given the company’s 4/20 results.
“We just closed the biggest 4/20 in our company’s history — double-digit growth across every store and every meaningful metric, on the single most important weekend of the year for our industry,” Sheridan said. “That’s the story of an operator that has already proven it can grow in the hardest market in the country. Now imagine what California’s legal operators can do when the federal tax code finally treats us like the legitimate, regulated businesses we are. This rescheduling announcement, on the heels of a 4/20 weekend like this one, should be a signal to everyone watching California cannabis: the legal industry is not just surviving — it is ready to compete.”
Sheridan cautioned that rescheduling is only the beginning of the reform California’s legal industry needs.
“Rescheduling is a first step, not the finish line,” he said. “It doesn’t end the conflict between state and federal law, it doesn’t solve banking, and it doesn’t address the illicit market undercutting every legal operator in California. But it is the single most consequential piece of federal cannabis policy in 55 years, and it gives legal operators the financial breathing room to reinvest in our people, our patients, and our communities. At Perfect Union, we intend to use that relief to strengthen the very things California’s cannabis consumers have been asking for: better prices, safer products, and a legal market that can actually compete.”
Industry analysts expect the removal of the 280E prohibition to free up hundreds of millions of dollars annually across the California market, giving compliant operators new capacity to reinvest in employees, product safety, and consumer pricing.
About Perfect Union and MWG Holdings, Inc.
Perfect Union is one of California’s leading independent cannabis retailers, operating eleven dispensaries statewide and offering a robust portfolio of award-winning cannabis brands. Perfect Union is owned and operated by MWG Holdings, Inc., which has more than a decade of experience managing cannabis businesses across California and navigating complex state and local regulatory environments. Under the leadership of CEO Tom Sheridan, MWG achieved positive cash flow in 2023 and delivered a 27% increase in transactions and 20% increase in revenue in H1 2025 over H1 2024, with a company-record sales month in December 2025.
View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/perfect-union-welcomes-historic-doj-cannabis-rescheduling-calls-move-a-lifeline-for-california-dispensaries-302752173.html
SOURCE MWG Holdings Group, Inc.
Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PR Newswire. USA Newshour takes no editorial responsibility for the same.
