Wisconsin Marijuana Legalization Proposal Includes Medical Program and Record Relief Process

3 February 2026

Wisconsin Democrats are making another push to legalize cannabis, laying out a plan that would allow both recreational and medical use, and would also create a regulated marketplace overseen by state agencies. The bill was introduced Monday at the state Capitol, led by Rep. Darrin Madison of Milwaukee and backed by other Democratic lawmakers and advocates.

Madison said the goal is legalization with structure, not a loose system. He and other Democrats argued Wisconsin is behind most of the country, including many neighboring states, and that politics, not public support, has kept the state from changing course. Democrats also framed legalization as a shift away from criminal penalties toward a licensed, tested, and labeled market.

The proposal would allow adults 21 and older to purchase and possess marijuana and hemp THC products. It draws a line between hemp and marijuana based on intoxicating cannabinoid content, defining hemp as a product with up to 10 milligrams of an intoxicating cannabinoid such as delta-9 THC per 12 fluid ounces, per serving, or per package of an edible. Higher-potency products would be treated as marijuana under the bill.

The plan would create a Division of Cannabis Regulation within the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, tasked with overseeing production, processing, transportation, and testing. Businesses selling marijuana in dispensaries would need licensing from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue.

The bill also includes a medical program, allowing people 18 and older, or younger with a parent or caregiver’s consent, to register as medical marijuana patients if they have qualifying conditions. The list of the suggested qualifying conditions includes cancer, glaucoma, AIDS or HIV, Crohn’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, post-traumatic stress disorder, opioid use disorder, and other conditions the state could designate by rule.

Taxes are also built into the proposal, with excise taxes at multiple points, including producers, processors, retailers, and buyers. Registered medical cannabis patients would not pay a 3 percent excise tax charged to buyers. That 3 percent buyer tax, under the proposal, would be directed to support research into the health effects of cannabis use.

The bill would include a process to review convictions for acts that would be decriminalized. It would also require the Wisconsin Department of Justice to contact people with marijuana crimes on their records to offer eligibility to remove those records.

The push comes in a Legislature still controlled by Republicans, where legalization efforts have repeatedly stalled. Republican leaders have cut cannabis provisions from state budgets in past sessions, and the Assembly Speaker, Robin Vos, has argued that marijuana is a dangerous drug. Vos has also said a Senate Republican medical marijuana bill is unlikely to pass the Assembly because he views it as too broad.

At the same time, some Senate Republicans have leaned toward a narrower medical approach. Senate President Mary Felzkowski has said she hopes a GOP bill for medical-only legalization can move forward, though she acknowledged that it depends on whether there are enough votes.

Outside the Legislature, supporters are trying to link the bill to economics as well as policy. One report describes hemp as an estimated $700 million industry in Wisconsin, and Democrats argued legalization could matter more now that federal policy has tightened around consumable hemp products. Madison said state legalization could help hemp businesses transition toward cannabis-derived THC, keeping jobs and investment in Wisconsin.

For Wisconsin residents, the immediate impact is political rather than transactional, since the bill’s path remains uncertain. But for patients, prospective cannabis business owners, and hemp operators watching the rules shift around THC products, the debate could determine whether Wisconsin builds an in-state regulated market or continues to rely on a patchwork of enforcement and cross-border access.