To the Governor’s Desk: Pennsylvania Passes Bill to Legalize Medical Marijuana; Foundation to Nullify Federal Prohibition

The proposed law would empower regulators to license up to 25 marijuana cultivators and processors, and up to 150 dispensaries. Qualified patients would need to obtain a recommendation from select physicians. Patients with a number of different conditions would qualify to use medical marijuana, including intractable pain, multiple sclerosis, HIV/AIDS, cancer, seizure disorders, and autism. According to NORML, the measure permits for the dispensing of herbal cannabis via vaporization, as well as the use of marijuana-infused extracts or oils, but it does not permit smoking.

Despite the federal prohibition on marijuana, measures such as SB3 remain perfectly constitutional, and the feds can do little if anything to stop them in practice.

EFFECT ON FEDERAL PROHIBITION

If the governor signs SB3, it would partially remove one layer of law prohibiting the possession and use of marijuana in Pennsylvania, but federal prohibition would remain in place.

Of course, the federal government lacks any constitutional authority to ban or regulate marijuana within the borders of a state, despite the opinion of the politically connected lawyers on the Supreme Court. If you doubt this, ask yourself why it took a constitutional amendment to institute federal alcohol prohibition.

While this Pennsylvania bill would not alter federal law, they would take a step toward nullifying in effect the federal ban. FBI statistics show that law enforcement makes approximately 99 of 100 marijuana arrests under state, not federal law. By easing the state laws, the Pennsylvania legislature would remove some of the basis for 99 percent of marijuana arrests.

Furthermore, figures indicate it would take 40 percent of the DEA’s yearly-budget just to investigate and raid all of the dispensaries in Los Angeles – a single city in a single state. That doesn’t include the cost of prosecution. The lesson? The feds lack the resources to enforce marijuana prohibition without state assistance.

Once SB3 becomes law, the Keystone State will join a growing number of states simply ignoring federal prohibition. Colorado, Washington state and Alaska have all legalized both recreational and medical marijuana, and 23 states now allow cannabis for medical use. With nearly half the country legalizing marijuana, the feds find themselves in a position where they simply can’t enforce prohibition any more. The feds need state cooperation to fight the “drug war,” and that has rapidly evaporated in the last few years with state legalization, practically nullifying the ban.

“The lesson here is pretty straight forward. When enough people say, ‘No!’ to the federal government, and enough states pass laws backing those people up, there’s not much the feds can do to shove their so-called laws, regulations or mandates down our throats,” Tenth Amendment Center founder and executive director Michael Boldin said.