AFA of PA ACTION ALERT
February 9, 2022
Issue
Tell Them NO to Legalized Recreational Marijuana
Details
A year ago State Senators Dan Laughlin (R-Erie) and Sharif Street (D-Philadelphia) circulated a co-sponsorship memo asking other senators to sign onto their bill to legalize recreational marijuana. Their proposal was introduced as SB 473 and was referred to the Law and Justice Committee on October 18, 2021. Thus far Senator Laughlin is the only Republican listed as a sponsor. On Monday that bill was discussed in committee! Here’s some of the takeaway according to the Philadelphia Inquirer:
- Committee chairman State Senator Mike Regan (R-Cumberland/York) expressed a desire to work with Democrats on the issue.
- Regan also noted that legalizing weed gives the state the opportunity to tax it and use the money more productively. (This bill is purported to funnel marijuana tax dollars into after-school programs for youth, student loan forgiveness and affordable housing!)
- Regan wants to make sure marijuana users get a product that is not laced with harmful substances such as fentanyl.
- Passage of the bill would expunge all marijuana-related offenses from the records of non-violent drug offenders.
All bad reasons to legalize recreational marijuana. Here are a few reasons why this legalization would be so harmful to PA, as it has been in other states:
- Today’s marijuana is far more potent than ever before. In the 70’s most marijuana contained less than 2 percent THC. Today it routinely contains 20 to 25 percent. THC is the chemical responsible for its psychoactive effects.
- In states that have legalized marijuana, emergency room physicians have become experts in dealing with marijuana-induced psychosis.
- A 2010 review of earlier studies in Schizophrenia Bulletin found that 27 percent of people with schizophrenia had been diagnosed with “cannabis use disorder”.
- A 2009 Oxford University paper by Dr. Seena Fazel found that people with schizophrenia are five times as likely to commit violent crimes as healthy people and almost 20 times as likely to commit homicide.
- The first four states to legalize marijuana have seen an increase of 37 percent for murders and 25 percent for aggravated assaults, far greater than the national average.
Action Steps
Contact Senator Mike Regan and tell him legalizing marijuana would be an extremely bad idea! His number is 717-432-1730. Contact your State Senator and ask him or her not to support SB 473. The harm far outweighs any financial benefit that may be claimed by proponents of legalized marijuana.
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