![](\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/MM_Bill_Tracker_V5_blank-21.jpg\"){kind=tracking}
<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
A key Pennsylvania lawmaker says he\u2019s optimistic that marijuana legalization legislation could be approved as early as this summer, calling the policy change \u201cinevitable\u201d as the commonwealth is \u201cbleeding out revenue\u201d to other states.<\/p>\n
Rep. Dan Frankel (D), who chairs the House Health Committee, spoke about the state of play around cannabis reform efforts in an interview with KDKA Radio that aired on Tuesday, stressing that Pennsylvania is now \u201cliterally surrounded by states that have legal adult-use cannabis,\u201d including Ohio, New York and Maryland.<\/p>\n
To address that policy disconnect, support criminal justice reform and raise revenue, the legislator said he will be \u201cputting out a proposal\u201d to enact legalization \u201cin the next few weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s so many reasons to do this, and I\u2019m really hopeful,\u201d Frankel said, adding that he feels it\u2019s feasible that the legislature could advance a legalization bill as part of the budget reconciliation process that must wrap up by the end of June.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a budget that has to get passed by June 30. This would be a significant revenue component. And, you know, I think that could be part of that discussion,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Gov. Josh Shapiro (D), who again included a legalization proposal as part of his latest budget request, has similarly indicated that the reform could advance on that timeline. But there are still open questions about what, if any, cannabis legislation could garner the necessary consensus for enactment.<\/p>\n
Frankel noted that an adult-use marijuana bill has already been filed in the Senate by Sen. Dan Laughlin (R), though he said it\u2019s \u201cnot a version that I would support necessarily.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut at least there seems to be some bipartisan support for doing something here, and I think there\u2019s recognition\u2014whether you don\u2019t like the idea of having legal weed in our communities, the fact is that it\u2019s here,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not legal. It\u2019s not regulated. We don\u2019t know that the products here are safe. They\u2019re not tested. We see in our communities, these safe stores that sell synthetic THC products that are completely unregulated, so there\u2019s a safety component here as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there is a recognition that we are literally surrounded by every state around us that has legal weed, so we\u2019re bleeding out revenue from the state to other states that are benefiting from their legalization of adult-use cannabis\u2014and we\u2019re losing revenue as well as sustaining an illicit market that provides products that are not tested and are not necessarily safe,\u201d Frankel continued<\/a>. \u201cSo there\u2019s a really compelling reason here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s inevitable in Pennsylvania that we\u2019re going to legalize this. The question is when, and I think the time is really right now,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a source of significant revenue\u2014and just so many reasons it\u2019s so compelling that I think ultimately we\u2019ll get there, and I\u2019m very hopeful that that\u2019ll happen in this session of the legislature. So we\u2019re going to send a bill over to the Senate, probably before June, and hopefully it\u2019ll start a discussion and the negotiation so that we can get to a good place that everybody can support it.\u201d<\/p>\n The lawmaker\u2014who has previously proposed a state-run marijuana regulatory framework<\/a>\u2014said a chief concern he wants to address is \u201cmaking sure that we have a criminal justice portion\u201d to ensure that people who\u2019ve been criminalized over cannabis can have those records expunged.<\/p>\n \u201cYou want to have an opportunity for the communities who have been targeted and victimized by the criminal justice system to benefit from this,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Additionally, he said \u201cwe want to make sure that there\u2019s a public health component to this, and we want to make sure also that there is significant revenue that\u2019s generated for the Commonwealth and for those affected communities.\u201d<\/p>\n Frankel and Rep. Rick Krajewski (D) first announced in December that they planned to file adult-use legalization legislation, emphasizing that there\u2019s a \u201cmoral obligation\u201d to repair harms of criminalization<\/a>\u00a0while also raising revenue as neighboring state markets mature.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, on Monday, the Pennsylvania House approved a separate bill sponsored by Frankel that\u2019s meant to strengthen safety standards and oversight of the state\u2019s medical marijuana program<\/a> as lawmakers work to advance adult-use legalization.<\/p>\n While Pennsylvania\u2019s medical cannabis program was enacted nearly a decade ago, lawmakers say the new measure, which now heads to the Senate, is necessary to improve testing compliance, product audits and lab inspections, among other aspects of the industry.<\/p>\n Separately, in a video interview released on Monday, the governor emphasized that the state is \u201closing out\u201d to others that have already enacted adult-use legalization<\/a>, while maintaining a policy that\u2019s enriched the illicit market.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s an issue of freedom and liberty. I mean, if folks want to smoke, they should be able to do so in a safe and legal way,\u201d he said. \u201cWe should shut down the black market\u2014and, by the way, every state around us is doing it. Pennsylvanians are driving to those other states and paying taxes in those other states.\u201d<\/p>\n Pennsylvania\u2019s Republican attorney general recently said\u00a0he wants to be a \u201cvoice for potential public safety risks\u201d<\/a>\u00a0of enacting the governor\u2019s proposal\u2014though he said his office would be ready to enforce the new law if lawmakers did vote to pass it.<\/p>\n The state\u2019s agriculture secretary separately told lawmakers that he\u2019s fully confident that his department is in a\u00a0\u201creally good\u201d position to oversee an adult-use marijuana program<\/a>\u00a0if lawmakers act.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, last month, top Pennsylvania police and health officials told lawmakers\u00a0they are prepared to implement marijuana legalization<\/a>\u00a0if the legislature moves forward with the reform\u2014and that they stand ready to work together as the details of legislation to achieve it are crafted.<\/p>\n Separately, amid the growing calls for marijuana legalization in Pennsylvania,\u00a0a GOP state senator said prohibition has been a \u201cdisaster,\u201d<\/a>\u00a0and a regulated sales model for cannabis\u2014similar to how alcohol and tobacco are handled\u2014could serve as an effective alternative.<\/p>\n Voters are ready to see that policy change,\u00a0according to a poll released last month<\/a>.<\/p>\n The survey, commissioned by the advocacy group ResponsiblePA, found that nearly 7 in 10 voters in the state support the reform\u2014including a majority of Republicans. And 63 percent want to see the legislature enact the reform this year, rather than delaying it.<\/p>\n A Republican Pennsylvania senator also recently\u00a0defended the push to legalize and regulate marijuana<\/a>, calling it \u201cthe most conservative stance\u201d on the issue.<\/p>\n \u2014 While Shapiro once again included a proposal to enact cannabis legalization in his latest budget request, there\u2019s been mixed feedback from legislators\u2014some of whom want to see the governor more proactively come to the table to discuss possible pathways for reform and others skeptical about the possibility of advancing the issue this session.<\/p>\n Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Scott Martin (R), for example, said last month\u00a0that he doesn\u2019t \u201csee any path whatsoever\u201d<\/a>\u00a0to enacting legalization in line with the governor\u2019s plan.<\/p>\n At the same time, the state secretary for the Department of Revenue has predicted that Shapiro\u2019s proposal could be passed during the current budget cycle, indicating that he feels reform could start to be implemented within months.<\/p>\n House Majority Leader Matt Bradford (D), meanwhile, said following the governor\u2019s budget speech that \u201cthere is real diversity of opinions among our members,\u201d likely referencing split perspectives on regulatory models, with some lawmakers pushing for a state-run cannabis program.<\/p>\n He also said recently that he feels\u00a0the time is ripe to advance marijuana reform this session<\/a>, saying \u201cit strikes me as abdicating our responsibility to protect our communities and our children, and at the same time, we are losing revenue that is going to go into our neighboring states.\u201d<\/p>\n Key lawmakers have expressed\u00a0skepticism about the governor\u2019s ability to see through the cannabis reform<\/a>\u00a0he\u2019s proposing, however.<\/p>\n \u201cThe governor needs to lead on something. If he wants something done, he needs to lead on it,\u201d Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward (R) said. \u201cHe can\u2019t throw an idea out there\u2014which he did last year\u2014and say, \u2018Let the legislature figure it out. I\u2019ll sign it. Then I\u2019ll go do press conferences all over the state.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n The House minority leader was also asked about the prospect of enacting various of the governor\u2019s budget proposals, including marijuana. And he said while he\u2019s \u201cnot going to speak for the governor,\u201d there\u2019s \u201cone person that has the ability to bring those deals together\u2014and that is the governor.\u201d<\/p>\n He referenced recent remarks from Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R) who said\u00a0there are logistical challenges to advancing legalization<\/a>\u00a0that he\u2019s unsure lawmakers will be able to overcome.<\/p>\n The feedback from GOP lawmakers is reminiscent of earlier criticism from the caucus about the governor, who they\u2019ve claimed has\u00a0made the call for reform without meaningfully engaging with the legislature<\/a>\u00a0about how to get it done.<\/p>\n The Republican chair of a key Senate committee recently said he\u2019s expecting to take up legislation this year that would make Pennsylvania the 25th in the U.S. to legalize adult-use marijuana. He also thinks that\u00a0more of his GOP colleagues could get on board with the reform<\/a>\u00a0soon than have in the past.<\/p>\n While many legalization advocates and observers think Pennsylvania is among the most likely states to pass a recreational marijuana law this session, the devil is in the details. One lawmaker has floated a\u00a0relatively simple bill to decriminalize personal possession<\/a>, while two others plan to introduce\u00a0more sweeping legislation that would legalize through a state-run system of stores<\/a>.<\/p>\n Sen. Dan Laughlin (R) last spring introduced a bill meant to\u00a0remove state barriers to medical marijuana patients carrying firearms<\/a>. While it didn\u2019t move forward, the lawmaker said in the recent interview that he believes political support for legalization more broadly has been building.<\/p>\n The senator said an event last May that the state is \u201cgetting close\u201d to legalizing marijuana, but\u00a0the job will only get done if House and Senate leaders sit down with the governor and \u201cwork it out.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n A separate decriminalization measure, meanwhile, from Pennsylvania Rep. Danilo Burgos (D), would\u00a0make simple possession of cannabis a summary offense punishable by a $100 fine without the threat of jail time<\/a>. Currently, low-level possession is considered a misdemeanor, carrying a penalty of up to 30 days in jail, a maximum $500 fine or both.<\/p>\n Additionally, in September, bipartisan Reps. Aaron Kaufer (R) and Kinkead\u00a0formally introduced a bipartisan marijuana legalization bill<\/a>, alongside 15 other cosponsors.<\/p>\n In July, the governor said his administration and lawmakers would\u00a0\u201ccome back and continue to fight\u201d for marijuana legalization<\/a>\u00a0and other policy priorities that were omitted from budget legislation he signed into law that month.<\/p>\n As for medical marijuana, the governor in October signed a\u00a0bill to correct an omission in a law that unintentionally excluded dispensaries<\/a>\u00a0from state-level tax relief for the medical marijuana industry.<\/p>\n About three months after the legislature\u00a0approved the underlying budget bill that Shapiro signed<\/a>\u00a0containing tax reform provisions as a partial workaround to a federal ban on tax deductions for cannabis businesses, the Pennsylvania legislature passed corrective legislation.<\/p>\n Separately, at a Black Cannabis Week event hosted recently by the Diasporic Alliance for Cannabis Opportunities (DACO) in October, Street and Reps. Chris Rabb (D), Amen Brown (D), Darisha Parker (D) and Napoleon Nelson (D) joined activists to\u00a0discuss their legislative priorities and motivations behind advancing legalization<\/a>\u00a0in the Keystone State.<\/p>\n Other lawmakers have also\u00a0emphasized the urgency of legalizing as soon as possible given regional dynamics<\/a>, while signaling that legislators are close to aligning House and Senate proposals.<\/p>\n As for cannabis and gun ownership, Laughlin had been looking at the issue for more than a year before introducing last year\u2019s bill,\u00a0writing last February to the state\u2019s acting police commissioner<\/a>\u00a0to \u201cstrongly encourage\u201d he review a federal ruling that the\u00a0U.S. government\u2019s ban on gun ownership by people who use marijuana is unconstitutional<\/a>.<\/p>\n Since then, further federal court cases have questioned the constitutionality of the federal firearm ban. A federal judge in El Paso, for example, recently ruled that the ongoing ban on gun ownership by habitual marijuana users was\u00a0unconstitutional in the case of a defendant who earlier pleaded guilty to the criminal charge<\/a>. The court allowed the man to withdraw the plea and ordered that the indictment against him be dismissed.<\/p>\n New York Opens Applications For Grant Program To Help Marijuana Dispensaries Run By People Harmed By Criminalization<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Photo courtesy of Brian Shamblen<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n The post Pennsylvania Lawmaker Says Marijuana Legalization Is \u2018Inevitable\u2019 As State Is \u2018Bleeding Out Revenue\u2019 To Neighboring States<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
A key Pennsylvania lawmaker says he\u2019s optimistic that marijuana legalization legislation could be approved as early as this summer, calling the policy change \u201cinevitable\u201d as the commonwealth is \u201cbleeding out revenue\u201d to other states. Rep. Dan Frankel (D), who chairs the House Health Committee, spoke about the state of playContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":80618,"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\/80617"}],"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=80617"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80617\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80619,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80617\/revisions\/80619"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80618"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80617"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80617"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80617"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nMarijuana Moment is tracking hundreds of 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\/2025\/03\/MM_Bill_Tracker_V5_blank-20.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><\/p>\n\n
\n
\nRead More: Pennsylvania Lawmaker Says Marijuana Legalization Is \u2018Inevitable\u2019 As State Is \u2018Bleeding Out Revenue\u2019 To Neighboring States<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"