Bipartisan Pennsylvania lawmakers have officially filed a bill to legalize recreational marijuana in the Commonwealth.
About two months after circulating a memo with draft legislative language to build support for the proposal, Reps. Aaron Kaufer (R) and Emily Kinkead (D) formally introduced the legislation, alongside 15 other cosponsors, on Friday.
There’s been a stepped up push for reform in the legislature as neighboring states such as Ohio move forward to open legal cannabis markets. In the earlier memo, the sponsors said the regional developments mean outside states are positioned to “capture Pennsylvania dollars into their market.”
The legislation would create a regulated cannabis market under the state Department of Agriculture, prioritize social equity and small businesses, enact safeguards to deter youth use and generate tax revenue for law enforcement and local governments.
Adults 21 and older would be able to buy and possess up to 30 grams of cannabis. Medical marijuana patients could grow up to five plants for personal therapeutic use, but adult-use consumers would not have that option.
The bill was revised from the draft version in several ways before being filed, including by consolidating regulatory oversight and making it so the agriculture department would be responsible for
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