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State Legislative Tracker: Pennsylvania pursues marijuana legalization

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September 29, 2014

Edited by Joel Williams
This week’s tracker includes a look at Pennsylvania's attempt to legalize marijuana.

Weekly highlight

Last week, no state adjourned its legislative session. Here is a brief look at issues making headlines across the country:

  • Missouri: A state representative's wife has been selected to replace him on the general election ballot after his death earlier this month. Randy Pike (R), the District 126 representative who would have turned 61 tomorrow, died on September 20 after ingesting a drink into his lungs. According to his campaign treasurer, Pike had recently suffered from pneumonia and required the use of a wheelchair during this month's veto session.[1] Gov. Jay Nixon (D) ordered flags in the state to be flown at half-mast, casting Pike as "deeply committed to his family, his faith and his community which he represented with distinction for more than a decade as a county commissioner, and most recently, as a state representative."[2] Last Tuesday, the Bates County Republican nomination committee met to select his replacement; Pike's wife, Patricia, defeated his former primary opponents Barbara York and Bill Yarberry. Patricia Pike said afterwards, "As a life-long resident of the district, a retired teacher and school counselor, business owner, and farm owner, I believe my strongest asset for this position is that for the last two years I have traveled with Representative Pike meeting the citizens and learning about district issues. I have been interested in the projects that Representative Pike has been working on and hearing viewpoints from constituents."[3] She will face Sam Foursha (D) and William Gilmore (C) in the general election on November 4. Randy Pike, a taxidermist and wood carver by trade, was the Bates County Northern Commissioner for 12 years preceding his swearing-in to the House. Funeral services were held Thursday morning.[4]
  • Pennsylvania: On September 24, 2014, the Republican-controlled Pennsylvania State Senate approved Senate Bill 1182, which would legalize several forms of medical marijuana, by a vote of 43 to seven.[5] Under the legislation, state residents would need to obtain an access card from the state's health department after providing proof to the department from their physician that they are being treated for a qualifying medical condition and that the physician is recommending medical cannabis as a treatment.[6] Such medical conditions would include "cancer, epilepsy and seizures, ALS, Parkinson's disease, traumatic brain injury and post-concussion syndrome, multiple sclerosis, spinocerebellara ataxia, post-traumatic stress disorder and severe fibromyalgia."[6] Patients would be allowed to use extracted marijuana oil, edible products, ointments and tinctures, but would not be allowed to smoke marijuana or use a vaporizer.[6] The bill would also establish a State Board of Medical Cannabis Licensing that would regulate a limited number of medical cannabis growers and dispensers.[7] On the bill's passing, Sen. Mike Folmer (R) said, "It's been a long road to this point and we have a long road ahead of us, but with 85 percent of Pennsylvanians supporting the use of medical cannabis to treat our most vulnerable, I am optimistic we can get this done."[6] The legislation will now be sent to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for approval. If approved by the House, the bill would be sent to Gov. Tom Corbett (R), who has proposed legislation that would allow research of a medical marijuana extract for the treatment of seizures in children, but has threatened to veto Senate Bill 1182.[5] The governor's spokesman, Jay Pagni, said, "The governor is opposed to the legalization of marijuana for either purpose: recreational or medicinal."[5]

Sessions

Regular sessions

Current sessions capture for the week of September 29, 2014
See also: Dates of 2014 state legislative sessions
Click here to see a chart of each state's 2014 session information.

Currently 3 out of 50 state legislatures are meeting in regular session. Ohio is meeting in Skeleton Session. A Skeleton Session typically includes very short nonvoting sessions instead of regular sessions with a full chamber. Virginia is meeting in special session.[8]

The following states have adjourned their 2014 regular session:[9]


In recess

As of today, September 29, there are two state legislatures currently in recess:[10]

2014 Legislative Elections

See also: State legislative elections, 2014

A total of 87 of the 99 chambers will hold state legislative elections on November 4, 2014.

The 87 chambers with elections in 2014 are in 46 states. They are:

The Kansas, Minnesota, New Mexico and South Carolina senates also typically hold elections in even years. However, senators are elected to 4-year terms in those states and those will not be up for election again until 2016.

1,097 of the country's 1,972 state senate seats are up for re-election in November 2014, and 4,958 of the country's 5,411 state house seats are up for re-election. Altogether, 6,055 of the country's 7,383 state legislative seats are up for re-election on November 4, 2014.

Primary Information

See also: Signature requirements and deadlines for 2014 state legislative elections

The state legislative filing deadlines and primary dates are as follows:

Note: Ballot access is a complicated issue. The dates in the table below are primarily for candidates filing for access to the primary. For more detailed information about each state's qualification requirements -- including all relevant ballot access dates for the primary and general election -- click to our detailed pages in the state column.

2014 State Legislative Primary Information
State Filing Deadline Primary Date Days from Deadline to Primary
Alabama Red padlock.png 2/7/2014 Red padlock.png 6/3/2014 116
Alaska Red padlock.png 6/2/2014[11] Red padlock.png 8/19/2014 78
Arizona Red padlock.png 5/28/2014[12] Red padlock.png 8/26/2014 90
Arkansas Red padlock.png 3/3/2014[13][14] Red padlock.png 5/20/2014 78
California Red padlock.png 3/7/2014[15][16][17] Red padlock.png 6/3/2014 88
Colorado Red padlock.png 3/31/2014[18][19] Red padlock.png 6/24/2014 85
Connecticut Red padlock.png 6/10/2014[20] Red padlock.png 8/12/2014 90
Delaware Red padlock.png 7/8/2014 Red padlock.png 9/9/2014 63
Florida Red padlock.png 6/20/2014[21][22] Red padlock.png 8/26/2014 67
Georgia Red padlock.png 3/7/2014 Red padlock.png 5/20/2014 74
Hawaii Red padlock.png 6/3/2014[23] Red padlock.png 8/9/2014 67
Idaho Red padlock.png 3/14/2014 Red padlock.png 5/20/2014 78
Illinois Red padlock.png 12/2/2013 Red padlock.png 3/18/2014 106
Indiana Red padlock.png 2/7/2014 Red padlock.png 5/6/2014 88
Iowa Red padlock.png 3/14/2014 Red padlock.png 6/3/2014 81
Kansas Red padlock.png 6/2/2014 Red padlock.png 8/5/2014 65
Kentucky Red padlock.png 1/28/2014[24][25] Red padlock.png 5/20/2014 112
Maine Red padlock.png 3/17/2014[26] Red padlock.png 6/10/2014 85
Maryland Red padlock.png 2/25/2014[27] Red padlock.png 6/24/2014 119
Massachusetts Red padlock.png 6/3/2014[28] Red padlock.png 9/9/2014 98
Michigan Red padlock.png 4/22/2014 Red padlock.png 8/5/2014 105
Minnesota Red padlock.png 6/3/2014 Red padlock.png 8/12/2014 70
Missouri Red padlock.png 3/25/2014 Red padlock.png 8/5/2014 133
Montana Red padlock.png 3/10/2014 Red padlock.png 6/3/2014 85
Nebraska Red padlock.png 3/3/2014[29] Red padlock.png 5/13/2014 85
Nevada Red padlock.png 3/14/2014 Red padlock.png 6/10/2014 88
New Hampshire Red padlock.png 6/13/2014 Red padlock.png 9/9/2014 88
New Mexico Red padlock.png 2/4/2014 Red padlock.png 6/3/2014 119
New York Red padlock.png 7/10/2014 Red padlock.png 9/9/2014 61
North Carolina Red padlock.png 2/28/2014 Red padlock.png 5/6/2014 67
North Dakota Red padlock.png 4/7/2014 Red padlock.png 6/10/2014 64
Ohio Red padlock.png 2/5/2014 Red padlock.png 5/6/2014 90
Oklahoma Red padlock.png 4/11/2014 Red padlock.png 6/24/2014 74
Oregon Red padlock.png 3/11/2014 Red padlock.png 5/20/2014 70
Pennsylvania Red padlock.png 3/11/2014 Red padlock.png 5/20/2014 70
Rhode Island Red padlock.png 6/25/2014 Red padlock.png 9/9/2014 76
South Carolina Red padlock.png 3/30/2014 Red padlock.png 6/10/2014 72
South Dakota Red padlock.png 3/25/2014 Red padlock.png 6/3/2014 70
Tennessee Red padlock.png 4/3/2014 Red padlock.png 8/7/2014 126
Texas Red padlock.png 12/9/2013 Red padlock.png 3/4/2014 85
Utah Red padlock.png 3/20/2014 Red padlock.png 6/24/2014 96
Vermont Red padlock.png 6/12/2014 Red padlock.png 8/26/2014 75
Washington Red padlock.png 5/17/2014 Red padlock.png 8/5/2014 80
West Virginia Red padlock.png 1/25/2014 Red padlock.png 5/13/2014 108
Wisconsin Red padlock.png 6/2/2014 Red padlock.png 8/12/2014 71
Wyoming Red padlock.png 5/30/2014 Red padlock.png 8/19/2014 81


Special Elections

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See also: State legislative special elections, 2014

There are no special elections scheduled this week. The next special elections will take place on November 4 in Louisiana and Mississippi.

Looking ahead

Upcoming special elections include:

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Associated Press, "Rep. Randy Pike, of rural western Missouri, dies," September 20, 2014 (dead link)
  2. ↑ The Examiner, "Flags at half-staff for death of state representative," September 23, 2014
  3. ↑ Nevada Daily Mail, "Republicans choose replacement candidate," September 24, 2014
  4. ↑ Nevada Daily Mail, "Rep. Randy Pike dies Saturday," September 23, 2014
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 CBS Philly, "Despite Governor’s Objection, Pa. Senate OKs Medical Marijuana Bill," September 24, 2014
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 ABC 27, "Pa. Senate approves medical marijuana bill," September 24, 2014
  7. ↑ Jurist.org, "Pennsylvania senate approves medical marijuana bill," September 25, 2014
  8. ↑ Cleveland.com, "Ohio's 2014 legislative calendar will be crammed with election-year politicking and backroom pleading: Thomas Suddes," December 15, 2013
  9. ↑ Stateside Associates, " Session Calendar 2014," accessed September 29, 2014
  10. ↑ StateNet, " Daily Session Summary," accessed September 29, 2014
  11. ↑ Alaska Statutes, "Section 15.25, Nomination of Candidates," accessed October 31, 2013
  12. ↑ Secretary of State Website, "2014 Election Important Dates," accessed November 4, 2013
  13. ↑ Running for Public Office, "A 'Plain English' Handbook for Candidates," 2012 Edition, accessed October 21, 2013 (dead link)
  14. ↑ Arkansas Code of 1987, "Title 7, Elections," accessed October 30, 2013
  15. ↑ Summary of Qualifications and Requirements for the Office of State Senator, Member of the Assembly, "June 3, 2014, Primary Election," accessed October 21, 2013
  16. ↑ California Elections Code, "Section 8100-8107," accessed October 28, 2013
  17. ↑ California Secretary of State Website, "Key Dates and Deadlines," accessed October 21, 2013
  18. ↑ Colorado Secretary of State Website, "Major Political Parties FAQs," accessed October 31, 2013
  19. ↑ Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Elections," accessed October 31, 2013
  20. ↑ Connecticut Secretary of State Website, "Frequently Asked Questions, Nominating Papers," accessed October 31, 2013
  21. ↑ Florida Department of State Division of Elections, "2013-2014 Dates to Remember," accessed November 6, 2013
  22. ↑ 2013 Florida Statutes, "Section 99.061," accessed December 2, 2014
  23. ↑ Hawaii State Legislature, "HRS §12-6 Nomination papers: time for filing; fees", accessed May 22, 2013
  24. ↑ 2014 Kentucky Election Calendar, accessed November 12, 2013
  25. ↑ Kentucky State Board of Elections "Candidate Qualifications and Filing Fees" accessed November 26, 2011
  26. ↑ Maine Secretary of State "State of Maine 2014 Candidate's Guide to Ballot Access," accessed February 11, 2014
  27. ↑ The State Board of Elections, "Candidacy," accessed November 5, 2013
  28. ↑ 2014 Massachusetts State Primary and State Election Schedule, accessed December 2, 2013
  29. ↑ Official Election Calendar for the State of Nebraska, accessed November 18, 2014
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