HARRISBURG — Recreational marijuana is back on the table for state lawmakers.

But it’s still a long way away from being legally sold in Pennsylvania.

Adult-use cannabis came the closest it’s ever gotten to being legalized in Pennsylvania in May, after the state House passed a proposal to allow state-owned stores to run a burgeoning legal marijuana market that nearby states have said has brought in tens of millions of dollars in additional revenue each year. But a state Senate committee quickly killed the bill, citing opposition from both Democrats and Republicans to the state-store model.

Now, lawmakers are trying a different approach.

State Sens. Dan Laughlin, R-Erie, and Sharif Street, D-Philadelphia, introduced their own proposal Thursday to legalize recreational marijuana by relying on current medical marijuana retailers to kick off the expansion of the market, while setting aside 15 licenses for small businesses to try to get a piece. The two lawmakers have worked on adult-use cannabis legislation in the past, the culmination of which came together in the bill introduced this week that Laughlin said was “years in the making.”

Under their bill, anyone in Pennsylvania who is 21 or older would be allowed to possess, consume, purchase, or transport adult-use cannabis. Senate Republicans have broadly opposed legalizing recreational marijuana, though Laughlin has remained a supporter for years. And support appears to be growing, Street said, noting that the bill has bipartisan support in the House and Senate.

A similar bill will be introduced in the state House in the coming weeks, said Street, who last week launched his campaign for Congress.

“There is legitimate representation and input from all four caucuses in the construction of this bill, and I think that’s important to ultimately getting a bill that can get to the governor’s desk,” Street said.

Under the bill, legalization of recreational marijuana would be monitored by a new, seven-member oversight panel of political appointees, titled the Cannabis Control Board, to be led by an executive director and chief medical officer. It would also move the Department of Health’s current purview of the state’s medical marijuana program to the new board.

Senate Bill 120 also would allow nonviolent marijuana offenses to be expunged from a person’s record, as well as try to target the benefits of the new industry to “disproportionately impacted areas” by the criminalization of marijuana.

Among the other proposals in the 181-page bill introduced Thursday:

—Edible forms of marijuana would be allowed to be sold in retail stores, which are currently unregulated in Pennsylvania.

—Residents could have two mature marijuana plants at their homes.

—Marijuana usage would be banned from all public places, including sidewalks and alleys.

—Possession would be limited to 30 grams of cannabis flower, 1,000 milligrams of edible THC, or 5 grams of cannabis concentrate.

—The proposal also suggests additional fixes to the state’s medical marijuana law, including how employers should handle medical marijuana users in the workplace. Under the legislation, employers cannot fire or refuse to hire someone because they have a medical marijuana card, but can fire them if they are not doing their job properly due to their marijuana usage. They can also drug test if it is seen as necessary for “safety-sensitive positions.”

Laughlin said in an email that there is “no timetable” on when he will call up the bill for a vote. As the chair of the Law and Justice Committee, he previously fast-tracked the House recreational marijuana bill for a vote, where it ultimately failed to pass the committee and will not be reconsidered.

Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman, R-Indiana, threw cold water on any hopes that recreational marijuana could be legalized as part of this year’s budget, which Gov. Josh Shapiro has repeatedly proposed as a new source of state revenue. Pennsylvania’s state budget was due by the start of this fiscal year, and is now nearly two weeks late, with no budget deal in sight.

In a statement, Pittman said he does not “see a prevailing view for legalization of recreational marijuana within our caucus as part of the current budget.”

Still, Street said he remains optimistic it could be part of this year’s budget, or next year’s. He pointed out that the state would receive approximately 25% of the funds generated by the licensing and sale of marijuana, which he said could help fund Pennsylvania’s mass transit systems, as SEPTA and other agencies face a fiscal crisis.

“Realistically, we need more revenue, and this is a good alternative,” Street added, in reference to the state’s $5.5 billion budget gap.

Even boxing champion Mike Tyson, who in April was named CEO of a Las Vegas-based cannabis company, chimed in to voice his support of the bipartisan effort to legalize recreational marijuana.

“Encouraging to see the PA GOP introduce a rec bill today,” Tyson wrote on X Thursday. “This bill would ensure that PA residents have access to safe, tested cannabis as opposed to the unsafe, untaxed pesticide laden stuff the illicit cartel operators are selling.”

The Laughlin-Street proposal would also allow the behemoth multistate operators that control much of Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana market to continue to do so, though the legislation would limit the number of storefronts a single company can have to 24.

The medical marijuana industry broadly praised the bill on Thursday as one “poised to create thousands of jobs” that “ensures equitable access,” according to a news release from the Pennsylvania Cannabis Coalition. Meanwhile, opponents of adult-use cannabis quickly rejected it.

“Lawmakers should prioritize the public health and safety of Pennsylvania families, not hand over our children and neighborhoods to the marijuana lobby,” said Dan Bartkowiak, chief strategy officer at the ultraconservative Pennsylvania Family Council, in a news release.

Laughlin can call up the bill for a vote in his committee at any time, though sweeping policy changes or new revenue generators are usually negotiated as part of a final budget deal, Street said.

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