![](\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/MM_Bill_Tracker_V5_blank-92.jpg\"){kind=tracking}
<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
Bipartisan Pennsylvania lawmakers say the votes are there to pass a marijuana legalization bill as soon as this year, though they stressed that the governor needs to work across the aisle to get the job done\u2014and argued that it would be helpful if the federal government implemented its proposed cannabis rescheduling rule sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n
During an X Spaces event on Wednesday, Sens. Dan Laughlin (R) and Sharif Street (D), as well as Rep. Amen Brown (D), discussed the prospects of enacting cannabis reform in the current session, expressing tentative optimism even though there are still outstanding issues to resolve.<\/p>\n
There also appeared to be agreement that the 20 percent tax rate for marijuana that was included in Gov. Josh Shapiro\u2019s (D) latest budget<\/a> was too high. And while there may be debate among members about Democrats\u2019 push for equity-focused provisions in whatever deal emerges, Laughlin indicated that GOP leadership is more amenable to some version of the reform than might meet the eye.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been advocating for this for almost three years now, and I will say that, in that time, the attitudes amongst the Senate Republicans has certainly softened,\u201d Laughlin said during the social media event hosted by Pablo Zuanic, managing partner at Zuanic & Associates.<\/p>\n \u201cI have what I would refer to as quiet support, where, if we put it up for a floor vote, I think our side could provide enough votes to get to 26\u201d to pass, he said. However, he added that there are still members \u201cconcerned about putting their name on it right now,\u201d particularly those in \u201cmore rural districts.\u201d<\/p>\n https:\/\/t.co\/pE5zvb0HDS<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Pablo Zuanic (@420Odysseus) June 19, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Street, who is sponsoring legalization legislation with Laughlin this session, offered a somewhat more optimistic perspective, saying that he thinks, \u201cpretty ambitiously,\u201d that lawmakers will get a cannabis bill to the governor \u201cby the end of the session.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know it\u2019s going to take some work, but I think we can get it done,\u201d he said. \u201cI think that, in terms of the timing, I think there\u2019ll be sales\u2026by the beginning of the by July 2025.\u201d<\/p>\n Laughlin left open the possibility that the reform is delayed until next year, even if he hopes to see bipartisan consensus sooner.<\/p>\n \u201cI think there\u2019s still a lot of issues to be addressed before we get this done,\u201d he said, adding that legislators don\u2019t necessarily need to pass legalization by the end of the current fiscal year and have until the end of the session in November to finish the job.<\/p>\n Street for his part, said he agrees that there\u2019s \u201cstill some discussion that\u2019s going to take place before we have a vote\u201d and that there are \u201cprobably 26 votes for it if we had a vote.\u201d However, he said \u201cthere won\u2019t be a vote until leadership is comfortable that they\u2019re ready to have a vote.\u201d<\/p>\n To that end, there have been questions about the willingness of Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward (R) to move a marijuana bill, despite increased bipartisan support for the reform. She\u2019s previously suggested that she doesn\u2019t see that happening until the federal government moves to end prohibition.<\/p>\n Laughlin said he\u2019s \u201ctalked to her about the descheduling on the federal level,\u201d and \u201cshe feels that that would make that a much easier process for her to be comfortable\u201d to act on state-level cannabis reform.<\/p>\n But the Biden administration\u2019s current proposal that\u2019s moving through the process wouldn\u2019t federally deschedule cannabis. It would simply move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), so it\u2019s unclear whether that would move the needle for Ward in the same way as full federal legalization might.<\/p>\n Last month, the governor\u2019s office also said that the Biden administration\u2019s move to federally reschedule marijuana \u201cadds support\u201d for an effort to legalize cannabis in Pennsylvania<\/a>.<\/p>\n In the interim, Laughlin said he\u2019s continuing to have conversation with GOP colleagues who are still on the fence, making the case that marijuana legalization is a civil liberties issue that they should get behind, and that the current unregulated market represents a public health and safety concern. Meanwhile, the existing medical cannabis program is \u201clike joining Sam\u2019s Club,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The senator, who is running for reelection, also pointed out that when he\u2019s talking to colleagues, he\u2019s noted that his advocacy for cannabis legalization and sponsorship of reform bills has only been \u201cpolitically expedient\u201d for him. He said might have \u201cirritated\u201d some people who are strongly opposed to cannabis, but by and large he\u2019s seen a benefit to embracing the increasingly bipartisan issue.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is 2024, and there is rapidly growing support for this,\u201d he said. \u201cI think people are starting to take notice, so I\u2019m hopeful that we will, at a minimum, get close this year.\u201d<\/p>\n SPACES: Pennsylvania AU Legalization <\/p>\n Join our panel discussion on Wed June 19th at 4:15pm ET with the sponsors of the legalization bills in the state Senate and House. With OH set to begin AU sales soon, we expect PA to follow. <\/p>\n PA is a key market for several MSOs, including\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/Ma0X1oSunD<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Pablo Zuanic (@420Odysseus) June 12, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n \u201cThe public is ready. I think more and more members are coming on board. And I think we\u2019re getting closer and closer every day,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n With bordering states like New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware and Ohio all either having or implementing adult-use legalization, the lawmakers who participated in Wednesday\u2019s virtual event said that adds urgency to follow suit, so that residents aren\u2019t going out of state to obtain cannabis and so that Pennsylvania can stop losing out on tax revenue and other economic opportunities to its neighbors.<\/p>\n But part of getting a legalization across the finish line means this session means having a governor who\u2019s willing to hold those bipartisan and bicameral conversations so they can reach a workable compromise, Laughlin said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe governor certainly carries a lot of weight in Pennsylvania, and if we could get him to be a little bit more active in the negotiation process, that would be helpful,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I also think that if we don\u2019t get this done this year, I feel pretty strongly that, next session, we will get there. The public opinion on cannabis has changed drastically just in the last eight years that I\u2019ve been in the Senate.\u201d<\/p>\n Street gave the governor more leeway when it comes to his work on the issue so far, saying \u201cat some point, somebody\u2019s gonna get folks to roll up their sleeves, figure this out and hash out of deal.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe governor is a smart guy. He\u2019s a talented guy,\u201d he said,\u201d and Shapiro\u2019s leadership on the issue \u201cmakes it that much more likely to get done.\u201d<\/p>\n The conversation with the Pennsylvania legislators comes just days after bipartisan state lawmakers announced their intent to file a new bill to legalize recreational marijuana<\/a>, soliciting support from colleagues.<\/p>\n Street was also among advocates and lawmakers who participated in a cannabis rally at the Pennsylvania State Capitol this month<\/a>, where there was a significant emphasis on the need to incorporate social equity provisions as they move to advance legalization.<\/p>\n Laughlin, for his part, also said an event last month that the state is \u201cgetting close\u201d to legalizing marijuana, but the job will only get done if House and Senate leaders sit down with the governor and \u201cwork it out.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n Warren County, Pennsylvania District Attorney Robert Greene, a registered medical cannabis patient in the state, also spoke at that rally. In January, Greene filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to overturn a ban preventing medical marijuana patients from buying and possessing firearms<\/a>.<\/p>\n Two Pennsylvania House panels\u00a0held a joint hearing to discuss marijuana legalization in April<\/a>, with multiple lawmakers asking the state\u2019s top liquor regulator about the prospect of having that agency run cannabis shops.<\/p>\n \u2014 Also in April, members of the House Health Committee had a\u00a0conversation centered on social justice and equity considerations for reform<\/a>.<\/p>\n That took place days after Brown (D) filed a marijuana legalization bill that he described as \u201cgrounded in safety and social equity.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m here to get this done,\u201d Brown said at a recent rally, noting that he and other people he knows have a \u201cpersonal experience\u201d with current marijuana policy.<\/p>\n At a prior meeting in March, members focused on\u00a0criminal justice implications of prohibition and the potential benefits of reform<\/a>.<\/p>\n At another\u00a0hearing in February, members looked at the industry perspective<\/a>, with multiple stakeholders from cannabis growing, dispensing and testing businesses, as well as clinical registrants, testifying.<\/p>\n At the subcommittee\u2019s previous cannabis meeting in December, members\u00a0heard testimony and asked questions about\u00a0various elements of marijuana oversight<\/a>, including promoting social equity and business opportunities, laboratory testing and public versus private operation of a state-legal cannabis industry.<\/p>\n And during the panel\u2019s first meeting late last year, Frankel said that state-run stores are \u201ccertainly an option\u201d he\u2019s considering for Pennsylvania, similar to what New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R)\u00a0recommended for that state last year<\/a>, though a state commission later\u00a0shied away from that plan<\/a>.<\/p>\n The cannabis proposal the Brown filed in the House in April is an identical\u00a0companion to a bipartisan Senate cannabis legalization measure<\/a>\u00a0that was introduced last year.<\/p>\n North Carolina Senators Attach Medical Marijuana Legalization Amendment To Hemp Bill<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n The post Bipartisan Pennsylvania Senators Say They Have The Votes To Legalize Marijuana, But Governor Needs To Step Up Engagement<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Bipartisan Pennsylvania lawmakers say the votes are there to pass a marijuana legalization bill as soon as this year, though they stressed that the governor needs to work across the aisle to get the job done\u2014and argued that it would be helpful if the federal government implemented its proposed cannabisContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":76445,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76444"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76444"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76444\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":76446,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76444\/revisions\/76446"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76445"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76444"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76444"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76444"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
\n
\nMarijuana Moment is tracking more than 1,500 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills<\/a> in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters<\/a> pledging at least $25\/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don\u2019t miss any developments.<\/strong>
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/MM_Bill_Tracker_V5_blank-91.jpg\"){kind=tracking}
<\/a>
\nLearn more about our marijuana bill tracker<\/a> and become a supporter on Patreon<\/a> to get access.
\n\u2014<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n
\n
\nRead More: Bipartisan Pennsylvania Senators Say They Have The Votes To Legalize Marijuana, But Governor Needs To Step Up Engagement<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"