The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has for the first time issued registrations to medical marijuana dispensaries, a bureaucratic maneuver under President Donald Trump 's historic rescheduling of the drug that could pave the way for the businesses to receive tax benefits long denied the industry.

The agency issued the registrations Friday to more than 900 state-licensed dispensaries in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia , the Justice Department said in a news release. The department did not immediately identify the approved businesses.

Attorney General Todd Blanche said in the statement that the regulated distribution of cannabis for medical use from those shops “will help ensure broader access to chronic pain treatment and the safety of the American people.”

In April, Blanche signed an order shifting the classification of state-licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I — reserved for drugs without medical use and with high potential for abuse, like heroin…