Fully legalized marijuana sales began June 30 in Maryland. Through July 4, according to the Maryland Cannabis Administration, consumers purchased $10.4 million worth of medicinal and recreational pot — more than 2.5 times the amount of medicinal marijuana they bought over the same weekend in 2022.
In New Jersey, recreational pot sales began April 1, 2022. By Dec. 31, consumers had purchased $329 million worth of recreational pot plus $226 million worth of medicinal marijuana. New York projected total pot sales of $663 million this year, the first to include recreational pot.
In June, Forbes estimated that the national legal marijuana market was worth $45 billion.
Those numbers will make it more difficult for Pennsylvania lawmakers to hold out on fully legalizing marijuana. The situation is similar to the early 2000s, when many lawmakers opposed casino gambling but rolled over to ensure the state government’s share of the vigorish. Pennsylvania now draws more government revenue from gambling than any other state.
Two senators from opposite ends of the state and the political spectrum, Republican Dan Laughlin of Erie and Democrat Sharif Street of Philadelphia, have introduced a bill to legalize general retail marijuana sales.
Citing markets in neighboring states, Laughlin said “…we have a duty to Pennsylvania taxpayers to legalize adult-use marijuana to avoid losing out on hundreds of millions of dollars of new tax revenue and thousands of new jobs.”
Street, citing the disproportionate impact of pot law enforcement on poor and minority communities, said “legalizing the use of adult cannabis will help us fully and equitably fund education, lower property taxes and address a variety of community needs … .”
The economic and social justice benefits of legalized pot use does not mean that it is problem-free. But the bill addresses safety issues.
It would make 21 the minimum purchase age, ensure police authority to prosecute pot-impaired drivers, ban marketing toward children, address workplace drug-testing and more.
Given the pervasive regional and national pot markets, the senators are right that Pennsylvania cannot remain an island of prohibition.
Legalization has broad public support. Lawmakers finally should pull the trigger on it while including the strongest possible safety measures.
— Republican & Herald, Pottsville via TNS
