The Commonwealth Beat with Laura LeBeau - Episode 67 - 1/19/2025

The Commonwealth Beat with Laura LeBeau is a statewide Public Affairs program airing on all of the Seven Mountains Media Pennsylvania radio stations. Could this be the year the Pennsylvania General Assembly authorizes recreational-use cannabis?  Big picture:  except for West Virginia, adult-use recreational marijuana is all around us.  As Pennsylvania stares down the barrel of a looming budget crisis, legalization advocates are pushing legal weed as a way to beef up state coffers.  But while groups like the Pennsylvania Cannabis Coalition, led by Executive Director Meredith Buettner, are making sure that the state's medical marijuna program doesn't get lost in the shuffle, they surprisingly look forward to adding adult-use marijuana to the mix.  Buettner, as she will explain, looks at it as a chance to further de-stigmatize cannabis, and help more people in need of its medicinal benefits to feel comfortable accessing it.  Buettner says her only goal is to bring good marijuana public policy to Pennsylvania.