Pennsylvania Democratic Senator says federal marijuana rescheduling will be “very influential”, in order to advance legalization in the state. This would give “political coverage” for GOP members who are on fence about reform.
In an interview with The Dales Report, Tuesday, Senator Sharif Street, (D), discussed cannabis legalization in Keystone State. He also mentioned a proposal he submitted last month, along with Sen. Dan Laughlin, (R), to end the prohibition.
Street stated that “it feels different” now.
Senator said, “It’s different exactly because there is so much unity.” “I believe that legislative leaders from both parties and both houses would do well to push this bill and give Governor Brown the legislation he is seeking.”
Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat from Massachusetts who supports the legalization of marijuana in its entirety and includes it as part of his budget proposal to legislators.
Street said in the interview that whether it’s grassroots activists or large cannabis corporations, “they’re all really saying the same thing: ‘Look, we’re at a place where it’s time to get this done.'”
The reclassification of marijuana by the federal government could also be a factor in influencing the legislative process this year.
It would have a great impact on the public. The senator stated that it could be useful to Republican legislators, who might feel they have some cover. The senator said that if Republicans controlled the federal government and rescheduled, it would signal to Republicans in the Commonwealth that they don’t need to be concerned.
Our future is still uncertain. The rescheduling of cannabis remains stalled, despite the Biden Administration’s proposal to move it from Schedule I (the first list) to Schedule III in the Controlled Substances Act.
Donald Trump supported the reform during the election campaign, but has been silent since becoming president. Scotts Miracle Gro CEO, however, recently stated that Trump had “multiple conversations” with him about marijuana during Trump’s second term. The president promised to see the reform process through.
Street said that when he first pushed for legalization at the Senate back in 2019 “I didn’t have the same support as we do now” in Pennsylvania.
It was important to work with the Republicans. “We had to bring more Democrats on board. “We’ve achieved a lot, and I feel we’re much better off now,” he added.
He said that while advocates and stakeholders in the industry “weren’t in the same position” as to what they wanted from legalization legislation “they’re generally in agreement on this bill which we can move forward.”
A bill legalizing cannabis in state-run outlets was narrowly approved by the House, but quickly voted down in May in the Senate. Street believes that the state-run model of legalization is not feasible.
It’s just a talking-point. The Republican Party is completely silent. At the very least, I’d say that most Democrats don’t like it. He said, “I don’t think it is a good model to promote.” When you’ve got, I would argue, a large number of Democrats opposing it, with no Republican backing in a state which is nearly evenly split, this just doesn’t seem like a sensible way to proceed.
The House-passed legalization bill isn’t necessarily dead for the session as a vehicle to advance reform, however, and Democrats in the chamber recently called on voters to pressure state senators to sign off on the cannabis measure, arguing that it would benefit health and safety and bring in billions of dollars in revenue for the commonwealth.
While other legalization proposals have since been filed in the state—including from bipartisan lawmakers in both chambers—Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R) and others have already signaled disinterest in the reform.
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The reform in the state legislature has been stalled for years due to the GOP’s opposition. But not all Republican members are against the policy change—and one recently said she felt her party should seize the “opportunity to snatch” the issue from Democrats.
Scott Martin (the influential Appropriations committee chair) said in an earlier statement that, despite the opposition of Senate Majority leader Pittman and other Republicans, he would not be moving forward with any legislation legalizing adult-use.
Nevertheless, one Republican senator sponsoring a legalization proposal said last week that supporters in the legislature are “picking up votes.”
Laughlin—who introduced a legalization bill with Street—said support is growing because “people would rather [legalize cannabis] Tax increases are a better way to achieve budget balance.”
Rep. Amen Brown (D) subsequently said he intended to file a House companion version of that measure, circulating a cosponsorship memo to colleagues last month.
Separately, just days after Laughlin and Street filed their measure, Reps. Emily Kinkead (D) and Abby Major (R)—alongside eight other cosponsors—filed legislation in the House to enact the reform. The pair have previously championed other proposals to end prohibition.
Laughlin and 16 other lawmakers also recently filed a separate bill to create a new regulatory body in the state that would begin overseeing medical cannabis while preparing to eventually handle the adult-use market as well.
Separately, a recent poll found that Pennsylvania voters say they favor a model where cannabis is sold by licensed private businesses rather than through a system of state-run stores.
A Democrat legislator recently introduced a bill to force employers to pay for medical cannabis in the case of workers compensation patients who qualify.
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