Marijuana Legalization Talks Move Forward In PA: Latest Updates

PENNSYLVANIA — A third and final hearing on marijuana legalization in Pennsylvania was held on Monday before a committee that is finalizing language for a new bipartisan reform bill that represents perhaps the most optimistic chance yet to pass through the General Assembly.

Advocates for the program pointed to the tax revenue which Pennsylvania is currently bleeding over to other neighboring states that have legalized it. Meredith Buettner, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Cannabis Coalition, pointed to those other states as models for Pennsylvania to work from.

"As adult use legislation passes in states all around Pennsylvania, tax revenues that belong in the Commonwealth are being given to neighboring states," she said during Monday's testimony. "As we look towards the future and inevitable federal legalization, if the Commonwealth has not developed and implemented its own adult use program by the time cannabis is federally legal, we run the risk of having the federal government intervene and set up the program for us,"

The hearing was the last of three on the subject in the bipartisan Senate Law and Justice Committee. The movement has support from the Republican side, as the meetings have been chaired by Republican State Sen. Mike Regan, who intimated that Pennsylvania runs the risk of being left behind on an inevitable movement if action is not taken.

“I am cognizant that the legalization of adult-use marijuana is concerning for many members, but as more surrounding states legalize marijuana, we cannot sit idly by,” Regan said.

Pennsylvania stands to gain anywhere from $400 million to $1 billion from legalization in tax revenue, speakers during Monday's hearing noted. Those are funds that currently going to neighboring states, which could be used to help build roads and bridges in Pennsylvania.

Regan added that learning from other states was crucial in developing sustainable, successful legislation.

“I want to fully understand which states are models of success, which ones we should look to for guidance on specific aspects of establishing an adult-use cannabis program in Pennsylvania and which states have failed in one way or another,” Regan said during the hearing. “It is not necessary for us to go about this blindly when 18 other states have navigated the process already.”

Specifically, speakers on Monday pointed to states like Illinois and Arizona, which were able o help medical marijuana dispensaries transition into selling recreational products. Laws in Michigan and Massachusetts were noted for tax structures that both made weed affordable and also cut out illegal sales from cartels.

Exact language of this new reform bill remains unclear. In the past, proposed bills in Pennsylvania have included complex structures for how the state would handle tax income from weed. Such legislation would create money for the state through a permitting structure for growers, processors, and dispensaries. The funds would go to after-school programs for youth, student loan forgiveness, and affordable housing.

In addition, these bills include a Cannabis Clean Slate initiative, which expunges all marijuana-related offenses from the records of non-violent drug offenders.

"Small marijuana convictions can keep you from affordable housing, federal and state aid, and even chances at a job," State Rep. Amen Brown (D), who co-chairs the panel with Regan, wrote recently. "Medical marijuana patients are being denied a job based on their consumption of cannabis. This war on drugs needs to head in the right direction."

While Monday's hearing focused on learning from other states, previous hearings zeroed in on law enforcement responses and limiting the influence of drug cartels.

It's not yet clear exactly when the new reform bill will be introduced.

Monday's hearing can be watched online here.