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HARRISBURG – At a news conference in the state Capitol today, state Sen. Mike Stack discussed two new bills intended to reform marijuana laws to curb the unintended consequences that drain local budgets and waste law enforcement resources. “Beyond the financial cost, our antiquated marijuana laws clog our criminal justice system and consume time that can be better spent arresting and prosecuting violent criminals,” Stack said in a news release sent to WESB. “Over the past 20 years, the number of marijuana arrests has exploded but the price of marijuana has dropped and the availability and potency has increased.” Stack said he has introduced two bills: Senate Bill 1307 will reduce possession of less than an ounce of marijuana to a summary offense for the first two offenses and provide discretion to District Attorneys for third and subsequent offenses, and Senate Bill 1308 will make it easier for former offenders to find a job by making expungement easier. “Increasingly, expun...

(News Release) HARRISBURG – A bill sponsored by Sen. Daylin Leach (D-Montgomery/Delaware) and Sen. Mike Folmer (R-Dauphin/Lebanon/York) that would legalize medical cannabis today received a hearing in the Senate Law and Justice Committee as advocates and families gathered at the Capitol to urge their lawmakers to support the bill. S.B. 1182, the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Act, would legalize the use of medical cannabis by patients as recommended by attending physicians. The introduction of this bill marks the first time in Senate history that a medical cannabis bill has been drafted with bipartisan support. “I am thankful that my colleagues decided to consider this bill today, as it is of critical importance,” Leach said. “The longer we wait to pass this legislation, the more children we will put at risk. I hope that we can advance S.B. 1182 expeditiously for the sake of the thousands of Pennsylvanians who need it.” Christine Brann, the mother of a son with Dravet Syn...