Fully legalizing marijuana in Pennsylvania would require a robust regulatory framework, from licensing growers and distributors to tracking and collecting taxes, preventing underage use and ensuring public safety.
Gov. Josh Shapiro supports legal adult use to the point of including that prospect in his first proposed budget. He recommends a 20% tax on wholesale prices of marijuana products. Assuming that sales would begin in January 2025, he estimated that the tax would produce $16 million in revenue in the first year and gradually rise to $188 million a year by the end of the decade.
Any regulatory regime also would have to include ensured transparency so that the relevant information could be used to guide policy. Yet, the administration remains far less than forthcoming regarding basic information about the existing medical marijuana program.
The state Department of Health has stonewalled the news organization Spotlight PA’s requests for records regarding marijuana prescriptions by specific doctors. According to the agency, releasing the data would violate privacy laws, even thought the Right-Know-Request did not seek any information about specific patients.
Using other public records, Spotlight PA has shown the department has cited excessive patient approval numbers for marijuana use in at least one disciplinary case against a doctor. In…
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