HARRISBURG, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — It’s back to the drawing board for marijuana legalization in Pennsylvania, as the bill that passed the state House last week failed to make it out of a Senate committee. But state senators have said they support legalization — just not the way the House bill would have done it.
That House bill would have placed marijuana regulation and sales under Pennsylvania’s Liquor Control Board, with state-run dispensaries similar to Pennsylvania’s liquor stores. It failed to advance out of the Senate Law and Justice Committee, seven votes to three.
State Sen. Dan Laughlin, the Republican chair of the committee, has been working on a legalization bill with Democratic state Sen. Sharif Street. He said while there were positives in the bill, trying to set up a brand new state store model rather than leveraging existing medical marijuana dispensaries wasn’t the way to go for many reasons.
“With this bill, we would start out roughly $250 million to $300 million in the hole before we ever take $1 in sales,” he said. “That just does not seem like the right path to go on when, when the private market is ready.”
Laughlin also said Pennsylvania needs specific oversight of cannabis, rather than tucking it under the LCB.
“Look at all the vape shops and smoke shops and gas stations that are virtually selling unregulated cannabis products right now. They are proliferating across the state, no age limits. A 16-year-old kid can walk in and virtually buy cannabis right now in Pennsylvania. We desperately need a cannabis control board,” he said.
Democratic state Sen. Lisa Boscola said while she strongly supports legalization, she’s a no on the House plan.
“You can go across the bridge into Jersey and purchase it legally. So for me, this is a no-brainer. But this bill is not the one that I can support today. I don't think it's a serious attempt to advance legalizing marijuana legislation.”
Laughlin said the bill he’s working on with Street still needs work before it’s introduced.