In 2016 Pennsylvania passed a law to legalize medical cannabis for qualified patients. Since then, the number has only grown as cannabis operators have had to expand and support the growing cannabis community. As of 2021, the number of registered medical patients in Pennsylvania was over 630K, making up about 4.8% of Pennsylvania’s total population.
On July 6, 2023, Senator Dan Laughlin (R) and Senator Sharif Street (D) have come together to file Senate Bill 846 (SB 846) to propose legalizing recreational adult-use cannabis sales in the Keystone state.
In a statement posted to his website, Senator Laughlin confirms that “SB 846 addresses safety by setting the minimum marijuana consumption age at 21 years old and providing appropriate deterrence to keep marijuana out of the hands of anyone under 21.” He also calls out that “with neighboring states New Jersey and New York implementing adult use, we have a duty to Pennsylvania taxpayers to legalize adult-use marijuana to avoid losing out on hundreds of millions of dollars of new tax revenue and thousands of new jobs.”
By approaching cannabis as a bipartisan issue and leveraging senators from both ends of the aisle, the overall sentiment is positive for SB 846.
If passed, SB 846 will allow adults of 21 years of age or older to be able to purchase up to 30 grams of cannabis. In comparison to the states Senator Laughlin has cited, New Jersey’s current daily purchase limit is 28 grams and New York’s is 84 grams.
Outside of recreational sales, SB 846 also discusses the opportunity for social equity operators. Senator Laughlin states that “Regarding social equity, this legislation would grant licenses to sell marijuana to social and economic equity applicants while providing room for new and existing licensees to ensure demand in Pennsylvania is met. Moreover, it expunges non-violent marijuana convictions for medical marijuana patients, which has also been championed in a bipartisan fashion, and goes further to expunge all non-violent marijuana convictions.”
MJ Freeway consultants have experience with winning new licenses as states flip to allow for medical and recreational use. If you are an operator or potential operator looking to expand in Pennsylvania and beyond, connect with our team for proven strategy and support in winning a license.
Connect with our MJ Freeway consultant team by clicking here:
