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Democratic lawmakers gathered at the Capitol Monday to announce their latest attempt to legalize recreational cannabis in Wisconsin. “Across the country, the cannabis debate is over,” Rep. Darrin Madison (D-Milwaukee) said during a morning press conference, adding that “40 states and Washington D.C. have legalized cannabis in some form.” That group includes Wisconsin’s neighbors Michigan, Illinois and Minnesota. Yet Wisconsin continues a complete cannabis prohibition.

This is not a reality Wisconsinites have chosen for themselves;  two-thirds of Wisconsin voters who responded to a Marquette Poll in 2025 said that they wanted to see the cannabis plant legalized. “The will of the people is clear on this issue,” said Madison. “And today, we’re acting on it.”

Democrats in the state Legislature are aiming to fully legalize cannabis for responsible adult use, including a medicinal cannabis program. “Legalizing cannabis in Wisconsin is an economic necessity, a public safety strategy and a racial justice imperative,” said Madison. Using the state’s hemp industry as an example, Madison said that entrepreneurs built out a cannabis supply chain with hemp as its bedrock after the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill. As a result, Wisconsinites began buying  hemp-derived products including  smokeable flower, beverages, vapes and edibles. 

“That industry now supports 3,500 jobs, and contributes $700 million to Wisconsin’s economy,” said Madison. All of that is at risk of completely vanishing after the federal government changed course by imposing THC limits on hemp products growers and distributors say are biologically impossible to achieve. Currently several bills with differing visions of how to regulate hemp in Wisconsin are circulating among Wisconsin lawmakers, with a deadline set by the federal government for businesses to either adapt or shut down coming up in November. 

Madison stressed that full legalization would both protect a thriving industry and generate revenue. “Wisconsin would raise nearly $300 million annually once the market is fully up and running,” Madison said, citing an analysis by the Legislative Fiscal Bureau. “That’s hundreds of millions of dollars we are currently leaving on the table or worse, exporting to other states, while pretending that prohibition still works. We all know that it doesn’t. And nowhere is that failure clearer than in our criminal legal system.” Madison said, adding that in 2018, four out of every 10 drug arrests nationally were for cannabis. 

While Black and white Americans use cannabis at similar rates, Black people were more than five times as likely to be arrested for cannabis than white people in 2022, Madison said. He pointed to Ozaukee County, where Black residents were 34.9 times more likely to be arrested for cannabis, and Manitowoc County where Black residents were 29.9 times more likely to face cannabis-related arrests. Madison said that both counties rank in the top five nationally for racial disparities in cannabis arrests.

“Let’s be honest,” said Madison. “That is not about public safety,” he said. “That is about policy choices that criminalize Blackness, criminalize poverty, and criminalize entire communities. The idea that we can incarcerate our way to safe communities is a lie. And cannabis has been one of the most effective tools for enforcing that lie.” Madison called on Wisconsin to replace a failed punishment model with evidence-based regulations that would help enrich communities instead of harming them for generations. 

Mike Sickler, co-owner of TerraSol Brands, echoed the call for legalization. “We did not invent the demand, but we are here to respond to it,” said Sickler. The federal hemp ban shook the hemp industry, he said, spreading fear and confusion. “What is frustrating is that the solution is right here in front of us,” said Sickler. “We already have the infrastructure, we already have the best practices in place, we already have the workforce, we already have the market. What does not exist is a clear state law that allows us to continue operating responsibly.” 

Phillip Scott, a hemp farmer and advocate for the industry, said that the federal hemp ban and the lack of a legalized cannabis industry in Wisconsin has removed certainty and stability for family farms and small business owners who saw a light at the end of the tunnel after the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill. “These are not speculative businesses,” said Scott. “These are working farms, these are family farms, and they follow the law. But today, that certainty is gone.” Scott said that cannabis legalization is about jobs, rural economies, and “giving farmers clarity instead of chaos.” 

Scott said that farmers are not asking for special treatment, but rather a fair and stable transition for those who followed the law. “We are asking for reasonable access to a legal market, and we are asking for a system that doesn’t shut family farms out before they even get a chance.” 

“Legalization is about freedom,” said Rep. Andrew Hysell (D-Sun Prairie). “Wisconsin is an outlier in terms of denying people this freedom.” Hysell noted a 1974 decision from the Alaska Supreme Court that found that the state’s privacy rights included an individual’s right to use cannabis. “And here we are over half a century later, and no one has the freedom to buy marijuana in Wisconsin. Standing in the way of the people’s freedom is not good politics, almost 70% of Wisconsinites want full adult use legalization, and even more want medical.”