Marijuana’s Federally Banned Status Is One Reason Pennsylvania Hasn’t Legalized It, Top GOP Senator Says

Pennsylvania is losing out on critical revenue by not legalizing marijuana,
a key Democratic lawmaker says, but it’s up to the GOP-controlled Senate to
make the next move. And one top Republican senator says there are “some
significant concerns” to address before that happens—including the current
federal classification of cannabis that’s under review by the Trump
administration.

In interviews with PoliticsPA last week, the bicameral and bipartisan
legislators were each asked about the prospects of adult-use legalization
in the Commonwealth.

Rep. Jordan Harris (D), who chairs the House Appropriations Committee,
pointed out that his chamber has previously passed a version of the reform,
consistent with what the governor has proposed as part of his recent budget
requests.

“For me, I think we should have done it a while ago. I think most
Pennsylvanians agree—most Americans agree that we should legalize
cannabis—and many of the states around us have already done so,” he said,
adding that he has friends in neighboring New Jersey who are “very happy
that Pennsylvania has not legalized adult-use cannabis because they get to
literally reap the benefits.”

“They get to reap the benefits of us not passing adult-use cannabis when so
many people from the southeastern part of the state cross right over the
border into New Jersey get legalized cannabis, and so we need to do it,” he
said. “We’re literally leaving money on the table by not legalizing
adult-use cannabis.”

Harris said the House continues to support the reform, which is among “many
of these things have been priorities for us for a while,” but in order to
enact legalization, “we’re waiting the Senate to either move on our bill or
send us their own bill or something around it. I think we definitely need
to talk about revenue.”

On the Senate side, Sen. Scott Martin (R), who chairs the chamber’s
Appropriations Committee, gave a decidedly pessimistic overview of the
cannabis issue, saying he “didn’t see [legalization legislation] going much
of anywhere” this session because “there’s some significant concern over
learning lessons of some other states.”

“Like, how about you build a regulatory framework first and tout the
protections? Like, how are you going to keep it out of the youth hands? How
are you going to get the technology that when someone’s pulled over on the
side of the road, that you can test for it right away? Or for insurance
purposes—for businesses and others—how much does the THC period of time
need to be out of your system before you drive that school bus full of
little kids, or before you operate a forklift in a warehouse?”

“Unfortunately, often in life, you see governments that want to jump in
right away, fully into the pool, and then deal with the consequences
after,” he said. “There’s Second Amendment considerations that come to this
as well. There’s other things that people need. How about we sort this out?”

“Does the federal government change the classification from being a
Schedule I narcotic to one that’s Schedule II that can be researched?”
Martin said. “There’s so many things in the pipeline now.”

Despite those apparent outstanding concern—and despite the omission of
legalization from a final budget deal the chambers agreed to last
month—several House and Senate lawmakers separately told Marijuana Moment
that they do see a path forward to end criminalization in the
fast-approaching 2026 session.

For example, House Health Committee Chairman Dan Frankel (D) said that it
“would’ve been a welcome surprise to see recreational cannabis legalization
pass as part of the budget, but we weren’t counting on it.”

“So far, there’s no sign the Pennsylvania Senate has the votes to end
prohibition—and there’s unfortunately no path forward without support from
both GOP leadership and a majority of Senate members,” the chairman, who
championed legalization legislation that passed the House earlier this
year, said.

Rep. Rick Krajewski (D), who joined Frankel in leading the push to advance
cannabis reform, said that it’s while it’s “disappointing that the Senate
was unable to come to an agreement on legalization for this budget, we
continue to be eager to work on a bipartisan path to adult-use cannabis.”

That could be achieved through the legislation he’s sponsored such as HB
1200, the House-passed bill that would have legalized marijuana for sale
through state-run-stores, or an “alternative proposal sent forward by the
Senate,” he told Marijuana Moment.

Another lawmaker who’s helped lead the push for legalization in the
Commonwealth, Rep. Emily Kinkead (D), told Marijuana Moment that she wasn’t
especially surprised that legalization didn’t make it in the budget. That
train seemed to leave the station months ago, she said, adding that those
she’s worked with on the issue have been “pivoting to trying to target
passage in 2026.”

Sen. Sharif Street (D), who has also sponsored adult-use legalization
legislation, emphasized public support for the reform.

“I fully expect that cannabis legalization will be at the top of the
discussion for next year,” he told Marijuana Moment. ”There’s an outcry
from members. And there’s an outcry from the public to get it done.”

The budget deal came weeks after Pennsylvania senators approved a
bipartisan bill that would create a new regulatory body to oversee the
state’s existing medical cannabis program and intoxicating hemp products,
while preparing to eventually handle the adult-use cannabis market as well.


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A top aide to Pennsylvania’s governor said in September that lawmakers
should stop introducing new competing legalization bills and instead focus
on building consensus on the issue—while emphasizing that any measure that
advances needs to contain equity provisions if the governor is going to
sign it into law.

Sen. Dan Laughlin (R), for his part, said in August that the House “needs
to pass the language in my bill and send it to my committee” after which
point he “can negotiate with the Senate and the governor.”

Laughlin separately said recently that supporters are “picking up votes” to
enact the reform this session.

Meanwhile, bipartisan Pennsylvania senators in October introduced a bill
that would allow terminally ill patients to use of medical marijuana in
hospitals.

Separately, the leading Republican candidate in the race to become the next
governor of Pennsylvania dodged a question about her stance on legalizing
marijuana—saying she doesn’t have a “policy position” on the issue and
arguing that the sitting governor’s proposal for reform “way, way
overstated” potential revenue.

The candidate, Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity (R), pointed to
neighboring Ohio, which launched its own adult-use cannabis market this
year, saying “they generated about $115 million in revenue.” And while the
populations of both states are relatively comparable, Shapiro’s budget projected
$536.5 million in cannabis revenue in the first fiscal year of
implementation.

She did, however, say that if Pennsylvania moves forward on enacting the
reform, she’ll “make sure that it’s banked appropriately.”

Meanwhile, a Pennsylvania Democratic senator recently said that federal
marijuana rescheduling would be “very influential” in advancing
legalization in his state, giving “political cover” to GOP members on the
fence about reform.

Polls have shown bipartisan support for legalization among voters, but the
reform has consistently stalled in the legislature, due largely 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.

*Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.*

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Hasn’t Legalized It, Top GOP Senator Says appeared first on Marijuana Moment
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