Democratic legislation would legalize cannabis in Wisconsin

Wisconsin Democrats joined hemp business owners and cannabis advocates on Feb. 2 to introduce legislation to legalize cannabis for recreational and medicinal use in Wisconsin and help save the hemp and cannabis industry in Wisconsin.

The bill (LRB-4219) would establish a “comprehensive, state-regulated cannabis framework. It focuses on consumer safety, public health, and accountability, while ensuring that Wisconsin benefits from the associated economic activity.” 

“Legalization is about freedom. Adults in Wisconsin deserve the freedom to make their own decisions, including whether or not to use cannabis,” said Rep Andrew Hysell who appeared with Rep. Christian Phelps (D-Eau Claire), Rep. Darrin Madison (D–Milwaukee), Rep. Andrew Hysell (D-Sun Prairie), and Senator LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee). “Wisconsin is an outlier when it comes to this issue. Illinois, Minnesota, Michigan, and Ohio have all passed legislation to legalize cannabis for responsible adult recreational use.”

Federal Farm Bill creates turmoil in the hemp industry

In 2018, the Federal Farm Bill legalized hemp and its derivatives as long as they contained less than 0.3% Delta-9 THC by dry weight. Because the law did not specifically address other intoxicating cannabinoids found in hemp, such as Delta-8 THC and THC-A, these products are being sold legally in the state. 

In November, President Trump signed the Fiscal Year 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act (part of H.R. 5371), which contained significant restrictions on hemp, fundamentally changing the landscape established by the 2018 Farm Bill. The new restrictions are set to take effect this November. 

The legislation proposed by Wisconsin legislators is partly a response to Congress’s approval of the Trump Administration's recent ban on most hemp-derived products. Advocates say the state must act before the November restrictions take effect to prevent the collapse of a $700 million industry that creates 3,200 jobs in Wisconsin.  With the Wisconsin legislature set to recess in a few weeks for a nine-month vacation, the need for a bill is urgent.

Rep. Madison (D-10) released the following statement: “We already have an important, thriving cannabis industry in Wisconsin, one worth $700 million by some estimates. That’s because when Congress legalized some hemp-derived products in 2018, Wisconsin entrepreneurs didn’t wait around. They built an entire cannabis supply chain – from farmers growing hemp, to processors extracting cannabinoids, to manufacturers producing edibles and beverages, to retailers selling those products across the state. We need to safely regulate this industry, not destroy it.”

Mike Sickler, a hemp business owner, said, “We invested our savings, we hired staff, and we worked with local farmers and manufacturers to build a hemp THC business that we operated openly. We pay taxes, we serve our customers, and we already do everything that's being asked in the current bill. We did not invent the demand, but we are here to respond to it. 

“Overnight, our business was thrown into uncertainty, no warning, no transition plan, just confusion, fear, and then the threat that everything we built could disappear, not because of what we did wrong, but because it shifted from under our feet,” added Sickler. 

Prior legislation and support

Legislation to legalize cannabis has been introduced several times over the past 15 years.

In 2013 and 2015, State Representative Melissa Sargent (D-Madison) introduced bills to fully legalize cannabis in the state, but was unsuccessful. Since 2019, Governor Tony Evers has added the legalization of cannabis into every one of his budgets, but each time Republicans have rejected and removed the proposal. 

“I also want to recognize and appreciate the leadership of Dane County Executive Melissa Agard for her years in the legislature advancing this issue. We stand on her shoulders today, continuing the work that she began in 2013,” said Hysell.

Cannabis, in some form, is legal in 40 states. A recent Marquette poll reports that 63% of Wisconsinites support legalizing recreational marijuana and 88% of Wisconsinites support legalizing medical marijuana.

“Wisconsin farmers stepped up when hemp was legalized,” said Phlip Scott, a hemp grower. “We followed the rules. We built an industry. Now we're asking for a future, not a dead end, and we believe full legalization will help us get down that path.”

Democratic legislation would legalize cannabis in Wisconsin © 2026 by Carol Lenz is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0