California Closer To Legalizing Pot

California’s budget woes are well documented, and in many ways, representative of the overall pain facing states as the recession lingers. Even when lawmakers announced a deal to close the $26 billion deficit in California’s $92 billion general-fund budget, the news was met more with apologies than applause. That’s because to close that $26 billion gap lawmakers agreed to over $15 billion in spending cuts, including slashing $9 billion from education, $1.3 billion from state-worker furloughs, and $1.2 billion from the prison system. Quite simply, California needs more revenue, and San Francisco Democratic Assemblyman Tom Ammiano has a plan.

In February Ammiano introduced a bill that would allow adults 21 and older to legally possess, grow, and sell marijuana. According to the California State Board of Equalization (California’s tax entity), the bill would generate nearly $1.4 billion in revenue for the cash-strapped state. Certainly not enough to fix California’s budget woes on its own, but according to supporters of the legislation, a good start.

The board estimates that marijuana retail sales would bring in $990 million from a $50-per-ounce fee and $392 million in sales taxes. The board revenue estimates do not even factor in the savings associated with no longer housing marijuana offenders in state prisons, resources expended in the judiciary dealing with these offenses, and the ancillary costs associated with enforcement operations.

The bill would regulate marijuana essentially like alcohol, and require that all revenue generated by the $50-per-ounce fee be used for drug education and rehabilitation programs. The current version of the bill envisions the state’s 9 percent sales tax applied to retail sales, with the fee likely charged at the wholesale level and built into the retail price. The bill is still in committee with hearings on the legislation expected in the fall. In anticipation of these upcoming hearings proponents of the measure launched a new television ad stating that marijuana consumers are ready and willing to pay taxes on their vice-in exchange for no longer being treated as criminals.

The movement appears to have momentum at the local level as well. Late last month three Los Angeles City Council members proposed taxing medical marijuana to close the city’s budget gap, and a group of criminal defense attorneys submitted a marijuana legalization measure to the state attorney general’s office, the first official step toward putting the legalization question directly to California voters via ballot initiative. Once the attorney general’s office provides an official summary of the proposed initiative, the group can begin gathering signatures. It will need about 443,000 signatures to place The Tax, Regulate and Control Cannabis Act on the November 2010 ballot. As proposed the initiative would repeal all state and local laws that criminalize marijuana.

While cost-benefit analysis concerning use and regulation of marijuana are difficult at best to pin down, advocates were pleased with the estimated revenue projections issued by the Board of Equalization. The Board used law enforcement and academic studies to calculate that Californians consume about 16 million ounces, or 500 tons, of marijuana each year. Representatives for the board made a specific choice to look at multiple reports from multiple sources concerning use and impact of legalization in an effort to provide as sober a projection as possible.

The logic behind the movement is pretty clear- before California begins shutting down vital services, slashing school spending, and further straining a corrections system on the brink- lets make sure all potential revenue sources are accounted for and tapped. Only then should we stress further infrastructure already at the brink. Until then, let’s tax the citizens standing up and volunteering their money for the greater good of the state and finally bring some sanity to our drug enforcement laws.

For more information on the measure and related legalization efforts, visit here.

Read more: california, cannabis, legalize, marijuana, politics

photo courtesy of RobotSkirts via Flickr.

quick poll

vote now!

Loading poll...

no!
leaning no
leaning yes
yes!

no!
leaning no
leaning yes
yes!

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

James W.

10:44PM PDT on May 3, 2011

Man makes alcohol God made weed, Who do you trust??????

send a green star

Fae K.

12:27PM PDT on Aug 17, 2009

Martin, I bet England is very different from California. I would love to hear more at my care2 inbox.

12:26PM PDT on Aug 17, 2009

Misha, how is your bootleg money coming along?

Evert Jan S.

9:51AM PDT on Aug 17, 2009

The Mexican word Marihuana was introduced by Randolph Hearst as a scare tactic to help him shut down farmers who had been growing Cannibis for an array of products for centuries. This then allowed him to promote his buddies to crank up the use of forest products and chemicals. Smarten up already; bring it back; let's clean up our act; use it intelligently; our forefathers did!

11:16PM PDT on Aug 15, 2009

Misha, that is a very cogent comment. May I borrow it for another forum? I think the idiots on the other site need to hear that.

Misha M.

11:04PM PDT on Aug 15, 2009

Prohibition has never worked; it only spawns violent criminality. Remember the States during the Volstead Act. An unmitigated disaster.

Of course, I'm living off bootlegging money. Hell, if pot is legalized there, I'll move to California and start growing the stuff. It's a good living.

Take it from me: alcohol is liquid gold.

SHANNON R.

4:10PM PDT on Aug 15, 2009

I BELIEVE IN PLANTS BEING HEALERS, BUT ALOT OF PEOPLE USE IT WRONG. THEN WE HAVE MORE PROBLEMS IN OUR HANDS.

megan m.

2:57PM PDT on Aug 15, 2009

I support this. While I do not smoke or drink, I think that so long as alcohol and cigarettes remain legal, then so too should marijuana as I find pot to be less offensive than the first two. For one it is not as dangerous as second hand smoke or harmful to the environment (think toxic cig butts littering our land and water). Also, generally, there is a much lower risk of users becoming angry and violent as with alcohol usage.
The legalization would bring in almost as much money as opening our coast for oil drilling (I'm so glad that didn't pass) and WITHOUT the negative effects on our ecosystems or supporting horrendous big companies. And as this article briefly mentioned, it would reduce the financial burdens on our prison system allowing more resources to focus on truly criminal actions.
Another bonus would be being able to produce hemp products such as paper and cloth which would add even more money to our economy.

Carol H.

12:42PM PDT on Aug 15, 2009

I don't like the idea but I don't think there is any other choice because that way they can collect taxes that California really needs.

There is only draw back on that that just means less people will be using it and there won't be that much tax they will collect.

9:18AM PDT on Aug 15, 2009

To all: My husband and I just started a petition on the Petition Site, called Keep our Society Safe. We would love for you to look at it, but remember we were even handed in our comments to you. It would be nice to be treated the same way. Thanks.