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June 12, 2026
Senate Bill 49, a Republican-sponsored measure to create a Cannabis Control Board in Pennsylvania, was rejected in 27-23 vote mostly along party lines. The bill could be put to another vote later this summer as tension over marijuana reform persists among Democrats and Republicans.
A Republican-sponsored bill to create an independent Cannabis Control Board in Pennsylvania was voted down by the state Senate on Wednesday, prompting leaders of both parties to cast blame for the stalemate on marijuana reform.
Sen. Dan Laughlin (R-Erie) sponsored the measure that would have transferred control of Pennsylvania's medical marijuana program from the Department of Health to a seven-member regulatory commission. Laughlin, who supports marijuana legalization, said the bill also aimed to address safety and oversight concerns with intoxicating hemp products.
Despite a Republican majority, the Senate rejected the bill in a 27-23 vote. Six Republicans voted against the measure along with 21 Democrats, including eight who had been co-sponsors of the legislation.
Laughlin said the bill would have put Pennsylvania in line with a federal policy that takes effect later this year to restrict hemp-derived THC products, including edibles and vapes often sold at gas stations and smoke shops.
“Pennsylvania is choosing to leave intoxicating ‘gas station weed’ completely unregulated,” Laughlin said in a statement after the vote. “That means no testing, no oversight, no age checks and no real accountability. It preserves a system where these products can be marketed like candy and sold wherever a transaction can take place.”
Democrats who opposed the bill said it would wrestle control of cannabis regulation away Gov. Josh Shapiro (D), who would prefer to have marijuana overseen by the Department of Agriculture.
Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) said taking the state's medical marijuana program away from the Health Department would undermine nearly a decade of industry experience the state has gained.
"It seems to me that we are changing the oversight agency to take power away from the governor," Costa said in written remarks about the bill. "I think that is unnecessary and costly.”
Laughlin's bill would have created a commission giving the governor power to appoint three members with experience in law enforcement, addiction and other matters related to cannabis. The remaining four members of the commission would be appointed by the Senate president pro tempore, Senate minority leader, House speaker and House minority leader.
The commission would hold authority over cannabis permits, enforcement, advertising, testing and other legal aspects of the industry. Among other measures, the bill would have required medical marijuana dispensaries to have a physician, pharmacist or other licensed medical professional present during hours of operation.
Shapiro spokesperson Rosie Lapowsky said the governor opposed the bill.
“The Shapiro Administration remains supportive of comprehensive cannabis regulation, which would enable a competitive, revenue-generating adult-use market, protect patient access to the current Medical Marijuana Program and rein in hemp-based intoxicant products that are currently unregulated,” Lapowsky said in a statement. “Senate Bill 49 does not substantively advance those goals.”
Costa called the bill a "distraction" from marijuana legalization in Pennsylvania. Every bordering state except West Virginia now has a legal market for adult-use recreational cannabis. Some Senate Democrats, including those who had co-sponsored the bill before voting against it, said they opposed the measure because it did not include a clean slate for people with past marijuana convictions, Spotlight PA reporter Stephen Caruso said in a post on X.
Immediately after Wednesday's vote, the Senate adopted a motion to reconsider the bill. Laughlin said he hoped to work with colleagues and put it to a second vote before the end of June.
"I think it's pretty clear that politics means more than children's safety," Laughlin said.
Among the three Democrats who supported the bill was Sen. Sharif Street, of Philadelphia, who has worked with Laughlin across several sessions to co-sponsor a bipartisan marijuana legalization bill.
The vote marks another impasse in the state's divided efforts to legalize marijuana. Last year, in the Democrat-controlled House, state Reps. Rick Krajewski (D-188th) and Dan Frankel (D-23rd) proposed legalizing marijuana to be sold at state liquor stores. The House passed the bill without any Republican support, but it was quickly killed in the Senate's Law & Justice Committee chaired by Laughlin.
Despite little progress on the issue this year, Shapiro included cannabis legalization in his proposed budget this year and estimated it would bring Pennsylvania $729.4 million in the first year of implementation from taxes and one-time licensing fees.
ResponsiblePA, a cannabis reform group that represents the industry, called on lawmakers to reach consensus on a legalization bill after Laughlin's measure failed in the Senate.
“PA leaders are delaying the creation of thousands of jobs that should be coming to Pennsylvania," spokesperson Monica McCafferty said in a statement. "It’s time to get on with it – Pennsylvanians are demanding that the legislature put politics aside and pass commonsense adult-use legalization without delay.”
Michael Tanenbaum
tanenbaum@phillyvoice.com
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