California is Tempted by Legal Cannabis

Is cannabis a solution to the recession? Arnold Schwarzenegger, the governor of California, is looking for new taxable goods and has recently welcomed a debate on the issue.

Schwarzenegger was careful to point out that he is not in favor of legalizing cannabis. However, times are hard and opinions are changing. According to widespread estimations (which are only estimations and not exact), this kind of step would enable the state to collect more than a billion dollars in taxes per year – impossible to refuse while California is struggling with a budgetary deficit of 20 billion dollars.

The debate on the legalization of cannabis is long standing in this state. Certain areas are being ravaged by gang activities, which are fueled by illegal drug trafficking over which the state has no control.

But with the economic crisis, the issue has taken a financial turn. Schwarzenegger, the “governator,” says, “I have never been against the idea of having an open debate on ways of generating additional income and I think we ought to study very carefully what other countries are doing in this area.” According to a recent survey, 56% of Californian voters are in favor of looking into the legalization of cannabis to increase the state’s income.

The principle of a consumption tax, based on the model for taxing alcohol, comes from the idea that some 10,000 tons of cannabis are currently harvested in the United States per year, the profits of which are estimated to be more than 10 billion dollars. Paradoxically, these statistics are largely based on studies undertaken during the Bush administration, which was looking for additional ways to fight against the drug market. Today, these statistics are deemed to be a “hallucination” by those who oppose legalization, those who often coincide with the traditional Republican electorate.

The financial argument plays into the hands of those who have, for years, supported the legalization of cannabis. In the Sacramento parliament, the San Franciscan Democrat Tom Ammiano has presented a bill proposing complete liberalization, but it will be necessary to wait for the next parliamentary session for the issue to be debated.

Obama’s Change of Direction

California is among the 13 American states in which cannabis use is permitted exclusively for medical purposes. Since 1996, when the state adopted the law, marijuana shops have flourished all over California, mainly in Los Angeles and San Francisco. But this kind of use is still forbidden by federal legislation. Therefore, the police continue to carry out dozens of raids to close these “clinics” and impose severe penalties on their owners.

With Barack Obama becoming president, those who support liberalization have been hoping for a general change in the climate. During a recent visit to Mexico, the secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, suggested for the first time that problems relating to drug trafficking should first of all be resolved by dealing with consumer demand and not only by relying on suppression. Those who support legalization want to add more promising signs to this, such as the relatively light penalty incurred by the Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, the national hero who was caught smoking a bong.

Shortly after he was appointed as the new attorney general, Eric Holder promised to end the raids on growers by federal agents as long as the growers do not disobey state laws. However, remarks by Barack Obama had a “cold shower” effect on the “pro hash” population. “I don’t think that this is a good strategy for reviving our economy,” he said, responding to a question from an internet user regarding the effects of legalizing cannabis on growth and the creation of jobs. In the past, when he was going for a term in office as a Washington senator, Obama clearly stated he was in favor of legalization.

[Editor’s note: some quotes may be worded based on translated material].