Marijuana Legalization v. Decriminalization
Effects of Legalizing Pot on Society and the Economy
Jul 29, 2009
Decriminalization means to change the status of something that is currently illegal to make it not illegal, however it can still be regulated. An example of this is speeding while driving. Although a person caught speeding is not prosecuted as a criminal, driving speed is still regulated by issuing fines for those exceeding the regulated limit. It is therefore not legal to speed, but it is not a criminal offense that is subject to jail time.
Many proponents of decriminalization of marijuana state that it would be acceptable for marijuana to be decriminalized, yet still regulated by the government. For these people, the decriminalization of marijuana would protect adults possessing small amounts or selling equally small amounts to other adults.
Many proponents of legalizing marijuana are looking to the existing laws that govern alcohol and tobacco. Using the legal model for these substances, they state that if the government were to legalize it, they would be able to regulate the growth, production, distribution and possession of this substance plus have the benefits of tax revenue from its sale. They are also stating that legalization would help to create jobs and boost the economy.
The Economic Factors in Legalization of Marijuana
Several advocates for legalizing marijuana are using the current state of the world economy as a factor in their fight for legalization. They state that government regulation would include taxation and the possibility of billions of dollars of tax revenue per year. U.S. Federal taxes are currently levied on alcohol, tobacco and firearms and have consistently produced around $17 billion of tax revenue for the US Government every year this decade and this doesn't include state taxes and sales taxes on these products. With this in mind, the marijuana supporters have been dangling the revenue "carrot" in front of the legislative noses that have been struggling to make ends meet in state and federal budgets. "This is the only constituency out there that's going to say, 'Bring it on; tax us,' " says Aaron Houston, director of government relations for the Marijuana Policy Project.
In a July 21, 2009 hearing, the voters of Oakland, CA voted to pass a medical marijuana tax of 1.8% of the gross sales. This tax is imposed on dispensaries and does not include the 9.5% sales tax plus revenues from employment and business taxes on these businesses. Medical marijuana is a very small portion of the marijuana use that is estimated to be in force around the country, but this small portion of people in this one California city are estimated to bring in $300,000 per year in tax revenue. This vote and the prospect of finding new tax revenue for their budget needs has other major cities looking at the issue such as Los Angeles, CA. California State Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) introduced a bill asking for the legalization of marijuana in California and the state Board of Equalization calculated that the bill could raise $1.4 billion per year.
Much of these estimates are speculation, however, since the sales of marijuana are illegal and therefore difficult to measure. Statistics are based on arrests, surveys and guesswork. The actual use of marijuana could be very much different than it is perceived. The legalization of the drug can also have an effect on use if the taxes that are levied on it are too large. Large-sweeping taxes of marijuana to offset the consciences of those legalizing it might make the drug too expensive for current users, which could serve to keep the sale of the drug underground.
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