HARRISBURG, Pa. — State Senator Mike Regan believes Pennsylvania is losing out on at least $1 billion every year.
That money, he says, comes from a marijuana industry which is legal in 18 states, but not in Pennsylvania. Instead, Regan (R-Cumberland, York) believes cash flow from the drug is going to other states and drug cartels.
"Right now, you can get it anywhere," Regan said. "Cops aren't arresting for it. Prosecutors aren't prosecuting it. [Marijuana offenses are] clogging up the courts. It's a billion dollar industry, so where is the money going? It's going to the guys who cut people's heads off and hang them from bridges."
Regan was, like many of his GOP colleagues, against legalizing adult-use recreational pot for years. As a former U.S. Marshal, he says he spent a lot of time on drug-related cases. He admits he initially thought marijuana was a gateway drug.
In 2015, Regan was among a small group of State House Republicans who got on board with legalizing cannabis for medicinal purposes. He says seeing how marijuana could be used for health reasons started to change his opinion.
Pennsylvania legalized medical marijuana in a bipartisan effort in 2017, but since, any pushes to legalize recreational adult-use pot have come from Democrats, and have failed to get off the ground in a Republican-controlled General Assembly. Former Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman, and most recently, even Governor Tom Wolf have implored the legislature to get on board with legalizing recreational marijuana, with no luck.
In January, State Sen. Daniel Laughlin (R-Erie) co-sponsored the Adult Use Cannabis and Economic Recovery bill along with State Sen. Sharif Street (D-Philadelphia) in February 2021.
In addition, Regan’s bill isn’t the first to be introduced this session. State Reps. Jake Wheatley (D-Allegheny) and Dan Frankel (D-Allegheny) announced they would cosponsor HB 2050, a new version of a bill of the same name that did not pass last legislation session.
“This is a completely new bill with a lot of, we think, important improvement,” Wheatley said at a press conference on Sept. 28.
Regan thinks his experience as a former U.S. marshal who spent years fighting the wars on drugs will help him convince his colleagues.
“I think I need an opportunity to get before the group and present my rationale," he said. People will change their minds."
If the bill passes, Pennsylvania would become the 19th state to legalize marijuana.
There is still a long road ahead for the measure, Regan said, as it could be up to 400 pages long and need to cover complicated issues like how to test for driving under the influence and whether the marijuana sold would also need to be grown in the state, as is currently mandated for medical marijuana.