Senate Bill No. 3 proposes to create the "Medical Cannabis Act," which would provide for the medical use of cannabis within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
At this point, you may be asking why I am writing about this proposed legislation in this particular newsletter. Well, the "Medical Cannabis Act" includes a section that addresses location and zoning in connection with the growing, processing and dispensing of medical cannabis.
The proposed legislation provides the following general rule: "Except as otherwise provided under this act, each grower, processor and dispenser license shall be valid for the specific physical location within the municipality and county for which it was originally granted. A person may not distribute medical cannabis from a location other than a licensed facility."
The proposed legislation addresses zoning as follows: (i) the growing of medical cannabis shall be classified as a normal agricultural operation pursuant to the Right to Farm Law, (ii) facilities for the manufacturing, preparation and production of medical cannabis shall meet the same municipal zoning and land use requirements as other manufacturing, preparation and production facilities and (iii) facilities for the dispensing of medical cannabis shall meet the same municipal zoning and land use requirements as other commercial facilities.
As for the status of Senate Bill No. 3, it has not yet been passed. After Senate Bill No. 3 was introduced, it was referred on January 26, 2015, to state government, where it remains.
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