A top Pennsylvania House lawmaker says Democrats are ready to pass a marijuana legalization bill this session, but that the party “will need Republican support” to get the job done—adding that it will be a “heavy lift.”
House Speaker Joanna McClinton, (D), said at an event on Tuesday organized by progressive non-profit Represent PA that legalizing cannabis and regulating its sales are two ways the state could raise revenues, along with imposing a gambling tax.
“Most House Democrats support [marijuana legalization]She said that we would need Republican backing to pass a massive bill. “It will be a difficult task.”
She added that the reform “could be a new economic opportunity—from farmers to [dispensaries] And those who create edibles.”
McClinton said that while Democrats control the Pennsylvania House by a narrow margin, the Senate is dominated by Republicans. Therefore, McClinton said that it’s still unclear whether the Senate will accept the reform proposed to the Governor. Josh Shapiro’s (D) latest budget proposal also includes the proposed reform.
McClinton told The Daily Pennsylvanian that “nearly half the states in America have legalized marijuana for recreational use, including all our neighbors.” Many Pennsylvanians drive directly to New Jersey or Maryland in order to legally purchase marijuana.
Republicans have been the main obstacle to the legalization of marijuana in California. Polls show that voters are bipartisan in their support. But not all Republican members are against the reform—and one recently said she felt her party should seize the “opportunity to snatch” the issue from Democrats.
Rep. Rick Krajewski (D)—who announced in December his intent to file a legalization measure alongside House Health Committee Chair Dan Frankel (D)—said the policy would provide for “more responsible usage” of cannabis, compared to the status quo that’s left adults either buying from the illicit market or traveling across state lines to get regulated products.
When people purchase products from the street, or smoke shops, “they don’t always know exactly what is inside the product, or how potent it is,” said he. “Legalization provides us with protections on products.”
Krajewski also defended his and Frankel’s proposal to enact legalization through a state-run retailers—a novel regulatory model for marijuana that departs from what other lawmakers and the governor have called for in the past.
He said that if we had state-run stores we could expect to get an additional hundreds of millions in revenue from the state because of tax revenues and sales.
The issue has polarized, and Pennsylvania currently is considered a “purple state”. It’s been hard to get any legislative process going because people don’t want to even engage in it.
Rep. Jordan Harris, (D), made his case separately in an interview to The Daily Pennsylvanian. He argued that Pennsylvania farmers “should grow and process and reap the benefits right here.”
If we can get it to the Governor’s desk I believe that surrounding states will experience a reduction in revenue, because money is staying in Pennsylvania,” said he.
The need for more police in Pennsylvania is not a recent phenomenon, he said. “So people’s mindset shouldn’t be ‘We’re flipping a switch from a dry state to a legalized state.'”
Frankel recently said that it was possible for the legislative to advance a law legalizing cannabis as part the budget reconciliation that has to be completed by June 30.
In a similar manner, the governor indicated that reforms could be implemented within that timeframe. There are questions as to which cannabis laws could gain the required consensus.
Meanwhile last month, the Pennsylvania House approved a separate bill sponsored by Frankel that’s meant to strengthen safety standards and oversight of the state’s medical marijuana program as lawmakers work to advance adult-use legalization.
Pennsylvania’s medical cannabis program, which was implemented nearly a decade earlier, has now been sent to the Senate. Lawmakers say this new measure is needed to improve the testing compliance, the product audits, the lab inspections and other aspects of industry.
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In a separate video interview, released by the Governor last month, he emphasized the fact that his state “loses out” on other states that have legalized adult use, while continuing a policy which has enriched the illegal market.
I think this is a matter of liberty and freedom. He said that if people want to smoke they should have the option to do it in a way that is safe and legal. “We should shut down the black market—and, by the way, every state around us is doing it. Pennsylvanians pay their taxes and drive into other states.
Pennsylvania’s Republican attorney general recently said he wants to be a “voice for potential public safety risks” of enacting the governor’s proposal—though he said his office would be ready to enforce the new law if lawmakers did vote to pass it.
The state’s agriculture secretary separately told lawmakers that he’s fully confident that his department is in a “really good” position to oversee an adult-use marijuana program if lawmakers act.
Meanwhile, in February, top Pennsylvania police and health officials told lawmakers they are prepared to implement marijuana legalization if the legislature moves forward with the reform—and that they stand ready to work together as the details of legislation to achieve it are crafted.
Amid the growing calls for marijuana legalization in Pennsylvania, a GOP state senator said prohibition has been a “disaster,” and a regulated sales model for cannabis—similar to how alcohol and tobacco are handled—could serve as an effective alternative.
Voters are ready to see that policy change, according to a poll released last month.
The survey, commissioned by the advocacy group ResponsiblePA, found that nearly 7 in 10 voters in the state support the reform—including a majority of Republicans. 63 percent of respondents want the state legislature to enact reforms this year rather than delay them.
A Republican Pennsylvania senator also recently defended the push to legalize and regulate marijuana, calling it “the most conservative stance” on the issue.
Maryland bill to allow adults to make marijuana edibles and concentrates at home is headed for the Governor
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