Title
Calling upon the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to enact legislation regarding adult-use cannabis and establish a responsible regulatory framework given the new Democratic majorities in both the Pennsylvania Senate and Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Body
WHEREAS, On November 3rd, 2026, Democrats in the Commonwealth retained control of the Governorship and House majority, simultaneously flipping the Senate. The Governor’s office and both chambers are now under Democratic control for the first time since 1993. Over the past decade, repeated efforts to legalize adult-use cannabis have stalled in the Senate under divided government. This moment presents a rare opportunity to enact comprehensive adult-use cannabis legislation; and
WHEREAS, Under current Pennsylvania law, Cannabis is legal only for medical use, while adult use remains illegal and possession of 30 grams or less remains a misdemeanor punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a $500 fine. The Commonwealth is now surrounded by states that have legalized adult use, including New Jersey, where sales began in April 2022, New York, where sales began in December 2022, Maryland, where sales began in July 2023, Delaware, which legalized adult use in 2023, and Ohio, where sales began in August 2024, leaving West Virginia as the only bordering state that has not legalized adult use; and
WHEREAS, Philadelphia has expressed clear support for reform, in 2014, City Council and the Mayor enacted legislation that replaced criminal charges for possession of small amounts of cannabis with civil penalties. This directly followed years where thousands of possession arrests occurred. In 2021, Philadelphia voters approved Question 1, a Home Rule Charter amendment which called upon the Governor and General Assembly to decriminalize, regulate, and tax the sale of Cannabis by a vote of 156,688 to 55,240 (73.93 percent); and
WHEREAS, Various proposals have come through the Pennsylvania House,...
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