HARRISBURG, Pa. — Note: The video is from December 2024.

The latest attempt to legalize adult-use cannabis in Pennsylvania is a step closer to completion after a vote Monday by the state House Health Committee.

The Cannabis Health & Safety Act was approved in committee by a 14-12 party-line vote. 

It now advances to the full Pennsylvania House of Representatives for consideration.

Introduced by Reps. Rick Krajewski (D-Philadelphia) and Dan Frankel (D-Allegheny), The Cannabis Health & Safety Act is described as “a bold, thoughtful proposal designed to center public health, repair communities harmed by prohibition, and create a stable, sustainable market,” the bill’s backers said in a press release.

“The time is now for Pennsylvania,” said Krajewski, who spent the last legislative session leading six hearings to study the successes and shortcomings of cannabis programs nationwide. “We have listened carefully to public health experts, criminal justice reformers, small business advocates and community leaders. Our bill reflects what we’ve learned — that we can and must legalize cannabis in a way that is safe, equitable and beneficial to all Pennsylvanians.”

According to Marijuana Moment, which has been following the effort to legalize adult-use marijuana in Pennsylvania and other states, the bill would give direct control of the retail side of the cannabis industry to the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, which would also be responsible for licensing marijuana cultivation, processing, transportation, and on-site consumption businesses that could be privately owned.

Under the legislation, cannabis shops would be barred from selling more than 42.5 grams of marijuana — the legislation’s proposed legal possession limit for adults aged 21 and over — within a 24-hour period.

Cannabis flower would be limited to containing 25% THC, and edibles would be limited to 5mg of THC per serving, with a maximum of 25mg total.

Adults who obtained a home cultivation permit from the LCB would be allowed to grow up to two mature and two immature plants in a secure location in their home for personal use under the terms of the legislation.

The bill also proposes that marijuana products sold at licensed shops would be subject to a 12% excise tax. Revenue from the taxes would be deposited in a Cannabis Revenue Fund managed by the Department of Revenue.

The fund would be used to cover administrative costs for the departments that regulate the marijuana program, including those that facilitate expungements for those with prior marijuana convictions for activities that the new law would make legal.

The rest of the tax revenue would be distributed to a community investment fund (50%), substance misuse treatment programs (10%), cannabis business development (5%), minority business development (2.5%), and grants to county courts that process expungements (2%). 

The remaining revenue would be deposited into the state general fund.

Critics of the bill have expressed concerns about the pace that it was introduced and considered by the committee.

The Act was introduced on Sunday, and voted on one day later.

“It’s no secret that I stand in opposition to broadly legalized adult-use marijuana,” Rep. Charity Grimm Krupa, a member of the Health Committee who voted to oppose the bill, said in reporting by Marijuana Moment. “But, frankly, I’m appalled by the manner in which it’s being rammed through the committee and the legislature.

“At this point, this vote isn’t just about marijuana. It’s about how we govern by scheduling a non-voting session on a Sunday to introduce a sweeping 173-page bill and then racing it through committee and towards the floor vote with barely 48 hours notice.”

The bill’s supporters point out that numerous hearings about the legalization of adult-use cannabis in Pennsylvania have already been held, and say it’s time to move the conversation forward.

With 24 states — including five of the six states that border Pennsylvania — having already legalized recreational cannabis, and public opinion overwhelmingly in support, the bill’s supporters say the commonwealth cannot afford to wait any longer.

“By legalizing and regulating cannabis thoughtfully, we can avoid pitfalls that have marred roll outs in other states,” said Frankel, who chairs the House Health Committee. “Our plan will create clear rules that protect consumers, educate the public, and ensure that Pennsylvania small businesses and taxpayers – not out-of-state corporations — benefit from the profits.”

As structured in the Cannabis Health and Safety Act, the hybrid marketplace is projected to bring in more than a half-billion dollars for the commonwealth every year from both taxes and profits.