FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, February 9, 2026
Contact: Violet Cavendish
[email protected]
Civil rights and criminal justice leaders call for five-party discussions to establish a clear, collaborative path forward
Harrisburg, PA — Following Governor Josh Shapiro’s inclusion of adult-use cannabis legalization in his state budget proposal for the third consecutive year, a broad coalition of Pennsylvania stakeholders, including civil liberties advocates and criminal justice reform leaders, sent a formal letter to the Governor, urging the administration to prioritize adult-use cannabis legalization this year by convening formal “five-party” leadership discussions to finally deliver this long-overdue reform.
The coalition is requesting that the Governor’s office bring together Democratic and Republican leadership from both the House and Senate's four caucuses in five-party talks to establish a clear, collaborative path forward in 2026. “Doing so would align Pennsylvania with national trends, advance economic and workforce goals, and most importantly, end the unnecessary criminalization of Pennsylvanians for simple cannabis possession and use that the public overwhelmingly agrees should no longer be punished,” the letter states.
While multiple bipartisan adult-use legalization bills have been introduced in both the House and Senate, the coalition argues that Pennsylvania continues to fall behind.
“As surrounding states implement adult-use cannabis programs, the Commonwealth is losing out on thousands of good-paying jobs, hundreds of millions in tax revenue, and significant economic development opportunities—benefits that are instead flowing across our borders. This competitive disadvantage grows more pronounced with each year of inaction.”
The letter also emphasizes that the repeated failure to enact adult-use regulations and meaningful decriminalization continues to impose profound human costs.
“Tens of thousands of Pennsylvanians are still arrested, jailed, or otherwise entangled in the criminal justice system each year for non-violent cannabis offenses—conduct that is legal and unpunished in nearly every neighboring state.”
The letter, sent to Gov. Shapiro on February 5, was signed by the following organizations: ACLU of Pennsylvania, the African American Chamber of Commerce of Pennsylvania, Doctors for Drug Policy Reform, Last Prisoner Project, Law Enforcement Action Partnership, Marijuana Policy Project, Pennsylvania Prison Society, the Public Defender Association of Pennsylvania, and Straight Ahead.
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Founded in 1995, the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) is the nation’s leading cannabis policy reform organization. MPP has played a central role in passing dozens of cannabis policy reforms in states across the country, including 14 successful cannabis legalization campaigns, and also works to advance federal reforms.