Copyright Mechanicsburg Patriot News
Boxing legend Mike Tyson visited Harrisburg Wednesday to lobby for marijuana legalization, hoping to help break the gridlock on the issue in the state legislature. Tyson, the former world heavyweight champion and current cannabis mogul, met with state lawmakers in the Capitol to advocate for reform, saying he’ll continue to do so “until it becomes legal, registered, and people stop getting sick off cannabis” that is unregulated and of low quality. Tyson has both a personal and financial interest in the issue, crediting marijuana for helping him get clean from hard drugs. He also started his own line of marijuana products under his brand Tyson 2.0, including THC-laced gummies shaped like Evander Holyfield’s bitten ear, and earlier this year was named CEO of the holding company behind several celebrity marijuana brands. Speaking to reporters Wednesday morning, Tyson said he’s stressing to state lawmakers that Pennsylvania is losing out on jobs and revenue by only allowing medical marijuana and not legalizing it for recreational use, as most surrounding states have done. There’s also a growing health issue, Tyson argued, as Pennsylvania consumers turn to unregulated grey-market substances that mimic the effects of marijuana, such as “Delta-8” products derived from hemp. Gov. Josh Shapiro pitched legalizing and taxing recreational marijuana as part of his current budget proposal, saying that hefty up-front licensing fees for cannabis sellers would boost state revenues by over a half billion in short order. The Republican-majority Senate is divided on the issue, GOP leaders have said, and a deal on legalization is not expected in the current budget cycle, now fourth months past-due. Ryan Burke, the CEO of the Tyson 2.0 brand, said he and Tyson met Wednesday morning with Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward, R-Westmoreland. Burke said Ward “seems very open but also very cautious” due to issues with the state’s medical marijuana program, and that “she also noted that her caucus is very, very cautious on this matter in particular.” Republican leaders have said Shapiro’s revenue projections from legalizing recreational marijuana sales are vastly over-estimated, and voiced concern that the additional burden on police from driving-while-high arrests would be more trouble than it’s worth. The Democratic-led state House passed a bill that would have recreational marijuana sold in state-run stores through the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, a proposal vehemently opposed by cannabis industry groups who want to set up privately-owned retail operations.
