Green with envy?
This past January, the states of Colorado and Washington legalized the sale of marijuana designed for both medicinal and recreational usage. The two states permit licensed shops to sell marijuana to anyone over the age of 21. The change has caused tremendous revenues for the state governments and merchants, which is causing a substantial number of politicos and voters to second guess their stance on cannabis.
Some Denver marijuana shops are estimating that sales have surged to $250,000 each month from $30,000 last year. In addition, economic data projects that combined retail and wholesale marijuana sales in The Centennial State will generate approximately $578 million and yield roughly $67 million in tax revenue.
A significant percentage from these revenues will be allocated to financing the construction of educational facilities. The 10 percent retail levy, meanwhile, will be utilized to regulate the marijuana industry.
Washington State is also expected to generate tax revenue of up to $2 billion over the next five years and the tax levels will be established at 25 percent.
Over the past several years, the legalization of marijuana has been heavily debated not just in the United States but in most westernized, developed countries. The reason for the debate isn’t necessarily a freedom issue, rather a finance and health issue. Since many state and provincial governments need revenues to fill their coffers and balance the budgets, marijuana could be the solution – not to mention the cost savings due to the reduced spending on law enforcement of marijuana.
An example of the latter can be found in Colorado and Washington, which are states that that could save an estimated $20 million in court costs as the number of inmates in prison because of marijuana charges is higher than any other drug. It has been noted that a portion of these cost savings will be utilized for substance abuse treatment and prevention for youth.
These revenue figures are being closely looked at by other states in the United States. While Colorado may have been in the forefront of bringing about this change because its medical marijuana industry is very well-established, it is believed that more states will soon be following the same path.
“There can be no doubt at all that Colorado, and very soon Washington state, are serving as clear petri dishes for other states and countries,” said Allen St. Pierre, executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
California, Oregon and Alaska, for instance, are expected to be adopting the same legislation soon, but experts say it’s crucial for the industry to have undisputed support for the pot legalization measure on The Golden State’s 2016 ballot.
“There can be no national legalization without California,” said St. Pierre. “So goes California, so goes the world, regarding cannabis,” added St. Pierre.
The country is beginning to turn the tide in relation to their stance on marijuana. A recent report by Pew Research revealed that Americans perceive marijuana to be less harmful than alcohol and close to 75 percent of them believe that the sale and use of marijuana will eventually be legalized throughout the country.
