Pennsylvania Senators And Governor Signal That House-Passed Marijuana Bill Needs Amendments If It Stands A Chance Of Becoming Law

Pennsylvania’s governor, as well as key senators on both sides of the marijuana legalization debate, are strongly signaling that a newly House-passed bill to enact the reform with state-run cannabis shops will need to be seriously amended if it stands a chance in the GOP-controlled Senate.

Following the narrow, party-line vote that squeaked the novel legalization legislation across the finish line in the House on Wednesday, Democratic and Republican senators have made clear that the measure heading to the Senate faces a tough path ahead, with key lawmakers focusing on provisions that’d put marijuana stores under state control, similar to how alcohol is sold in Pennsylvania.

Even Gov. Josh Shapiro (D)—who has included legalization in his last three budget requests—seemed doubtful the bill from Reps. Rick Krajewski (D) and Dan Frankel (D) will be the final version he would end up signing into law.

“I thought the House took a really important step by beginning to move the marijuana legalization bill,” Shapiro said on Tuesday. “Obviously, it’s the beginning. This is going to have to go through some bipartisan compromise.”

Others put the political dynamics around the legislation in starker terms, including Sen. Dan Laughlin (R), a longtime champion of legalization who is sponsoring another bipartisan reform bill with Sen. Sharif Street (D).

“As someone who has advocated for a responsible approach to legalization, I have repeatedly made it clear that there is zero chance that the state store model will make it through the Senate,” Laughlin told Spotlight PA.

The senator, who chairs the body’s Law and Justice Committee, added in a social media post that he sees the House-passed bill as dead on arrival in his chamber. “There is no path forward in the Senate for a state store model for adult-use cannabis,” he said.

Street, for his part, said he thinks “the Senate will make changes” to the House bill, while leaving the possibility open that “this could end up being a vehicle that ends the prohibition on cannabis and gets an adult-use bill to the governor’s desk.”

In a social media post he acknowledged that the House “made history” by passing the bill, which he characterized as “real progress,” but added: “I oppose state-run stores and [Liquor Control Board] oversight.”

Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R) was critical of the legislation, saying it’s “hard to believe the House spent so much time this week on a serious issue and ultimately sent us an unserious bill.”

“With House Democrats’ failure to obtain bipartisan support for the bill in their chamber, it’s clear advancing marijuana legalization in this manner was a performative exercise,” he said.

On the House side, Frankel, who’s sponsoring the cannabis legislation, said during a press briefing following the floor vote that “we’re very excited to move this over to the Senate, and hope that the Senate is going to engage and and have a discussion with us.”

“You know, we understand that this is the first stage—a historic stage—nevertheless, the first time something has been moved” to the Senate, Frankel said. “We want them to take a look at this, give us some feedback. Let’s have a discussion. But I think Pennsylvanians are demanding that we move forward on legalization for so many reasons that were outlined in the debate.”

Asked to react specifically to Laughlin’s negative reaction to the House-passed bill, Frankel shot back by asking, “What is your idea to deal with an environment where small businesses in other states that have the model that he’s been advocating for have not been successful?”

The representative argued that “when there have been dispensary licenses allocated, for instance, to certain communities, you know, typically they can’t survive because they’re unable to finance themselves, they end up getting being bought by the big marijuana companies, the multi-state operators.”

Krajewski, for his part, said that “if the Senate was serious about passing a cannabis bill, they would have sent us one, but we’ve sent the bill forward.”

“If the Senate is serious about cannabis legislation, we now have a vehicle with which we can have negotiations about,” he said.

To that point, Frankel acknowledged that to date House lawmakers “have not had really had substantive conversations with with the Senate” about crafting a compromise cannabis bill.

While there’s another competing bipartisan legalization measure that’s expected to be unveiled soon, this one already has 27 House Democrats signed on as cosponsors to the Krajewski-Frankel bill—more than one-fourth of the party’s caucus in the chamber.

GOP members have raised various concerns about the policy change itself, such as potential impaired driving and workplace intoxication. The procedural and policy-specific concerns are expected to be amplified in the Republican-controlled Senate

The largest challenge for the legislation going forward will likely come down to its proposal to have the state control cannabis sales—a regulatory model that exists in no other legal market in the U.S.

For what it’s worth, 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.

The governor has repeatedly called for adult-use marijuana legalization, including the reform in his budget requests. However, he hasn’t endorsed the specific idea of having a state-controlled model.

Key Pennsylvania lawmakers have already made clear that they’re at odds on the path forward for legalization—while a top Republican senator recently dismissed the idea that the reform is achievable at all this session.

Rep. Abby Major (R)—who is sponsoring another forthcoming legalization bill that envisions a traditional private sales model alongside Rep. Emily Kinkead (D)—said on the floor on Wednesday that she stands opposed to the now-passed legislation, emphasizing that she disagrees with the state-run stores proposal.

“Besides the fact that this would require state employees and the state itself to violate federal law—risking the freezing of employees, personal and state bank accounts and the state’s access to federal funding—this bill is a costly and inefficient approach for the commonwealth, posing significant risks to our economy, our medical program, social equity and public health and safety,” she said.

Regardless of which direction Pennsylvania lawmakers do—or don’t—go on marijuana legalization session, a survey released recently shows a majority of adults in the state support the reform—and opposition to the policy change has fallen by nearly 50 percent over the last decade.

Kinkead has made the case in another recent interview that legalizing cannabis in Pennsylvania will help the state mitigate public health and safety concerns associated with the illicit market, including the fact that unregulated products can be laced with fentanyl.

The lawmaker previously introduced a separate bipartisan marijuana legalization bill, alongside 15 other cosponsors, last September. It did not advance, however.

Meanwhile, Laughlin recently called for the creation of a state “legacy” fund, using tax revenue from adult-use marijuana sales and gaming to make long-term investments in the Commonwealth’s economy.

The senator argued that, beyond using any resulting tax revenue to fund day-to-day projects and public services, the state should earmark a portion of those tax dollars for a fund to “provide a sustainable source of prosperity that lasts for generations.”

Pennsylvania House Speaker Joanna McClinton (D) recently said that 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.”

Another Democratic lawmaker said legislature is “substantially closer” to reaching a deal on marijuana legalization, and an initial vote on a bipartisan cannabis reform bill could come as early as this month.

Polls have shown bipartisan support for legalization among voters, but the reform has consistently stalled in the legislature, owing in large part to GOP 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.

Separately in March, the Pennsylvania House approved a 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.

While Pennsylvania’s medical cannabis program was enacted nearly a decade ago, lawmakers say the measure, which now heads to the Senate, is necessary to improve testing compliance, product audits and lab inspections, among other aspects of the industry.

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania Democratic lawmakers recently introduced a bill that would allow farmers and other small agriculture operators to sell marijuana they cultivate to existing growers and and processors if the state moves to legalize adult-use cannabis.

Separately, an independent Pennsylvania agency is projecting more tax dollars to be generated from adult-use marijuana sales compared to what the governor’s office has estimated, although it expects significantly less overall revenue from cannabis legalization due to differing views on licensing fees.

Pennsylvania officials have also launched a new survey that invites legal marijuana businesses across the country to provide information about their operations to help the state better understand the cannabis industry as lawmakers consider enacting adult-use legalization this session.

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Also, in a video interview released in March, the governor emphasized that the state is “losing out” to others that have already enacted adult-use legalization, while maintaining a policy that’s enriched the illicit market.

“I think it’s 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,” he said. “We should shut down the black market—and, by the way, every state around us is doing it. Pennsylvanians are driving to those other states and paying taxes in those 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.

A Republican Pennsylvania senator also recently defended the push to legalize and regulate marijuana, calling it “the most conservative stance” on the issue.

Pennsylvania House Passes Bill To Legalize Marijuana Sales At State-Run Dispensaries, Sending It To Senate