Executive Summary
For almost twenty years, the United States has seen major changes in state laws regarding use of marijuana. However, federal regulations continue to classify marijuana as a schedule I controlled substance arguing marijuana has a “high potential for abuse and no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.” I believe it is time the federal government not only recognize the medical benefits of marijuana but decriminalize all marijuana use.
Introduction
Legalization of marijuana for medicinal use began in California in 1996 with the passage of Proposition 215. Since that time 24 other states and the District of Columbia have passed legislation or ballot measures legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes. In 2012, 4 states and the District of Columbia have passed ballot measures or legislation legalizing marijuana for personal recreational use and 20 states and the District of Columbia have now decriminalized marijuana. Despite these changes marijuana continues to be illegal on the federal level; preventing many from benefiting from treatment with cannaboids and causing significant challenges to businesses in states where sale is legal. However, despite the ongoing federal illegality of marijuana, enforcement of these laws is not consistent and some Federal Courts have gone as far as ruling that the Department of Justice cannot prosecute marijuana offenses when no state law has been broken. It is time the federal government legalize marijuana use and research to remove these conflicts between state and federal law.
Approaches and results
Despite significant increase in public support for marijuana legalization, Pew Research Center reports 57% of US Adult support legalization as of September 2016 and Gallop polling indicates 60% of US adults support legalization as of October 2016, the federal government continues to classify marijuana as a schedule I controlled substance and has refused appeals to reclassify marijuana. The federal government’s refusal to change its stance on marijuana not only is contrary to public opinion but prohibits scientists from adequately testing the effects of marijuana on health conditions that could establish more significant medical use. The medical community has come to accept and advocate for responsible use of compounds found in marijuana for treatment of some conditions. Under current federal regulations marijuana is treated the same as heroin, despite many studies showing it is less addictive and has less impact on public health than tobacco or alcohol, which are both legal and minimally regulated in the US.
Advocates also argue that arrests and prosecution of marijuana laws on both the state and federal level are racially biased; one comprehensive study by the ACLU between 2000-2010 found African-American’s were 3.73 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana than whites despite usage rates being similar between the two races. This study also found enforcing marijuana laws cost approximately $3.6 billion dollars annually without having any impact on the availability of marijuana. Another study by the ACLU found more people are arrested in the US for marijuana than for violent crimes.
Finally, one need only examine the tax revenues from states that have legalized marijuana to understand the potential fiscal benefits of widespread legalization. Colorado saw a revenue of $99.5 million for taxes and licensing fees of recreational marijuana from January 2014 through May 2015. Washington saw a revenue of $76.9 million from July 2015-June 2016. The Tax Foundation, a not-for profit tax research group, estimates total state and federal tax revenues between 5 and 18 billion dollars if recreational marijuana was legalized. Their research also indicates if tax rates were set in a measured fashion the black and grey markets would dry up significantly.
Conclusion and Recommendations
In the 1920’s, prohibitionists realized banning alcohol consumption was not impacting society as they had believed it would. It is time the federal government realize the same is true now for marijuana. It is time the will of the majority be heard and marijuana be legalized in the US. Not only will it provide a new source of revenue but it will be a major step toward making the justice less racially biased. You can reach out to your local legislators on the state and federal level by phone or email and indicate your support for complete legalization of marijuana. You can also follow the Marijuana Policy Project at https://www.mpp.org/states/key-marijuana-policy-reform/ to see what legislation exists in your area.