Tag: Pennsylvania

Josh Shapiro, the governor of Pennsylvania, pushed state lawmakers this week to legalize and regulate marijuana for recreational use. He emphasized the need to follow the lead of nearby states that have already made this decision. In his yearly budget speech, which included a $48.3 billion spending plan, the governor urged legislators to band together and enact legislation legalizing marijuana, on the condition that the sector be subject to prudent regulation and taxes. Although there is no explicit provision for… Read more.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) says he doesn’t support Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) call for a crackdown on the nicotine product Zyn because it’s a matter of “freedom and personal choices,” drawing parallels to his reasons for supporting marijuana legalization. Schumer said earlier this week that he’s asking the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate the health impacts and marketing of the nicotine pouches that have been popularized on social media in a… Read more.

A Pennsylvania district attorney and gun rights advocates have filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to overturn the ban preventing medical marijuana patients from buying and possessing firearms—the latest in a series of legal challenges to the policy. Warren County, Pennsylvania District Attorney Robert Greene, a registered medical cannabis patient in the state, teamed up with the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) to file suit against the federal government in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania… Read more.

This week, Pennsylvania’s legislature passed a bill to allow more cultivators and independent dispensaries to grow and sell directly to consumers in the state. Senate Bill 773, which is now awaiting Gov. Josh Shapiro’s signature, was passed by the state Senate and then altered in the House. It was at one point expected to address broader issues, such as home growing or full adult-use legalization, but the end version was more limited. Instead, it focused on allowing all 25 independent medical cannabis… Read more.

With oral arguments set for Monday in a federal court case over a proposed Philadelphia safe drug consumption site, counsel for the would-be facility sent a letter to the judge in the case on Thursday calling out the Department of Justice (DOJ) for taking apparently contradictory legal positions. In the Philadelphia safe consumption site case itself, the letter says, DOJ has argued that the harm reduction aims of Safehouse, the nonprofit attempting to open facility where people can use illicit… Read more.

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives has approved a Senate-passed bill to allow all licensed medical marijuana grower-processors in the state to sell their cannabis products directly to patients. The legislation—which has been amended to further grant grower permits to independent dispensaries—cleared the chamber in a 114-89 vote on Wednesday. Because it was revised, it must return to the Senate for concurrence before it’s potentially sent to the governor’s desk. Under the measure, sponsored by Sen. Chris Gebhard (R), the state… Read more.

With Ohio becoming the latest state to legalize marijuana, there’s a renewed sense of urgency to follow suit in neighboring Pennsylvania, with the governor’s office calling it “another reminder” of the need to enact reform. Pennsylvania is now more solidly blanketed by states with legalization on the books. Five out of six bordering states—Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Ohio—have all done away with prohibition, leaving residents with plentiful and relatively accessible options to buy out-of-state cannabis products. Gov. Josh… Read more.

The Pennsylvania House Subcommittee on Health Care on Wednesday heard from citizens and medical experts about legalizing cannabis for adult use, WGAL reports. State Rep. Dan Frankel (D) indicated that the issue could come up for a vote in front of the full House next year.  State Rep. Paul Schemel (R), the subcommittee’s minority chairman, said he believed that “every state has gotten it wrong.”  “To think that this bad milk, if we put it back in the refrigerator as good milk,… Read more.

The Pennsylvania Senate has overwhelmingly approved a bill to allow all licensed medical marijuana grower-processors in the state to sell their cannabis products directly to patients—and there’s talk of potentially expanding the legislation in the House to allow for personal home cultivation as well. In a 44-3 vote on Wednesday, the Republican-controlled Senate advanced the measure from Sen. Chris Gebhard (R), who first previewed plans to file the reform bill late last year. Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana law currently says that only… Read more.

A Lancaster, Pennsylvania vape shop is suing the district attorney and other law enforcement officials claiming they searched the business without a warrant and seized legal hemp-derived THC products, FOX43 reports. The lawsuit by Smooth Vape, LLC names District Attorney Heather Adams, a lieutenant with the Lancaster County Drug Task Force (LCDTF), three unnamed members of the LCDTF, and Lancaster County itself.  The lawsuit alleges that Adams ordered the LCDTF to carry out raids on smoke shops and vape shops and that… Read more.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) tacitly endorsed rapper Wiz Khalifa’s plan to get “stoned af” on marijuana before throwing the ceremonial first pitch at a Pittsburgh Pirates game this week. But the artist’s plans apparently involved cannabis and psilocybin mushrooms. Khalifa first said that he planned to get high before the game on Monday, and Fetterman quoted the tweet with a photo of him holding up his flag that says “It’s 420 Somewhere.” The senator has been known to use flags to promote his… Read more.

A bill to legalize cannabis for adults was introduced in Pennsylvania last week. The bipartisan legislation would legalize cannabis possession and retail sales and includes expungement provisions for nonviolent cannabis criminal charges.  The measure was introduced in the Senate by Democratic Sen. Sharif Street and Republican Sen. Dan Laughlin.  In a press release, Street described the bill as a “singular opportunity to correct decades of mass incarceration, disproportionate enforcement against marginalized communities, the criminalization of personal choice, and the perpetuation of violence.”  “Legalizing the adult… Read more.

The Pennsylvania Senate Law & Justice Committee has approved a measure that would allow physicians to certify patients for the state’s medical cannabis program for any condition they deem suitable, Pennlive reports. The measure will next move to the full Senate for consideration.  The bill would effectively eliminate the state’s list of 24 qualifying conditions, and leave the decision to doctors and their patients. The legislation would also end the expiration date for medical cannabis cards.  Committee Chairman Mike Regan (R), who sponsored the… Read more.

Pennsylvania on Sunday awarded $392,265 in grants to three agriculture non-profits to fund fiber and food hemp market awareness in the state. Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said the grants will “feed the growth of an industry that was once a staple of Pennsylvania’s economy and is once again growing opportunities for new businesses, farm income, jobs, and climate-smart, environmentally sound products.”  Vytal Plant Science Research received the largest grant – $315,765 – to introduce a STEM curriculum to high schools and… Read more.

A bill proposed in the Pennsylvania House last week would protect medical cannabis patients from being charged with driving under the influence charges simply for testing positive for THC, Capitol Wire reports. The measure only covers Pennsylvania-registered medical cannabis patients and does not protect drivers who ate impaired by cannabis whether they are medical cannabis patients or not.  In a cosponsor memo, state Reps Chris Rabb (D) and Aaron Kaufer (R), said medical cannabis patients “regularly” contact their offices “concerned that state… Read more.

On starting over and pivoting toward passion Holly is on a mission to change the representation of women, particularly over the age of 30, within the cannabis industry. Four years ago, she started Moodporium, a hemp dispensary in Pittsburgh that ships across the country. In 2022, Holly discovered that the cannabis merchandising sector didn't have apparel that spoke to her middle-aged, low-key self and cannabis lifestyle. She asked around, and others agreed. So, Cannamood Apparel was born. Now, Holly collaborates with female artists to create clothes… Read more.

Pennsylvania legislators have developed three distinct proposals to achieve multiple objectives: legalizing recreational cannabis, delivering social justice to individuals with minor cannabis convictions, and maximizing the economic benefits of a billion-dollar industry. Their innovative plans will cater to various needs and objectives while paving the way for a more equitable and prosperous future. In a groundbreaking move, two co-sponsorship memos are currently making the rounds in both the House and Senate. The memos, backed by State Senator Marty Flynn of… Read more.

The Pennsylvania Appellate Court made a groundbreaking ruling, allowing workers' compensation laws to cover medical cannabis expenses. Paul Sheetz, the deceased plaintiff, treated his chronic pain with medical cannabis after a work injury in 1977. He also used cannabis to wean off prescribed opioids. The defendant, Firestone, argued that reimbursing medical cannabis costs would violate federal law, but the court disagreed. The court ruled that insurers are not recommending cannabis, so it is not a federal crime. This decision benefits those who… Read more.

Three separate proposals are planned by Pennsylvania lawmakers seeking to legalize recreational marijuana, provide social justice to those with low-level marijuana convictions and reap the tax benefits from a potential billion-dollar industry. Two co-sponsorship memos circulating in the House and Senate propose selling marijuana in state-owned liquor stores, restricting possession and use to adults at least 21 years of age. The memos respectively filed by state Rep. David Delloso, D-Delaware, and state Sen. Marty Flynn, D-Lackawanna/Lehigh, would also permit Pennsylvanians… Read more.

A Republican state senator in Pennsylvania is calling on law enforcement to take steps to protect the gun rights of marijuana  consumers, particularly medical cannabis patients—pointing to a federal judge’s recent ruling that the U.S. government’s ban on gun ownership by people who use marijuana is unconstitutional. Sen. Dan Laughlin (R), in a letter to the acting commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police, noted that the commonwealth currently prohibits people from obtaining a license to carry firearms if they acknowledge being… Read more.