Marijuana Producers and Distributors Volunteer to Pay Taxes

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The State of California has currently in the midst of a major budget crisis (who isn’t in some sort of financial crisis right now?). In their latest attempt to make ends meet, the state has decided to withhold tax rebates from their citizens. Without some sort of bailout, the future looks pretty grim for the state of California.

Recently, California received an offer for that bailout from an unlikely source. The marijuana producers and distributors in California have volunteered to pay taxes on their illegal operations in an effort they claim would provide the state with at least a billion dollars in additional revenue. Here is an excerpt from their site:

California is in trouble (again) with its budget. As this is written (August, 2008), there are plans to cut one billion dollars from important rapid transit projects. There are also plans to cut back welfare for the elderly and disabled and to cut back drug treatment programs for prisoners. Cutting back on important programs will simply cause more problems in the future — with higher demands on the budget.

In order to try to make up the shortfall, the state of California is in negotiations with Indian casinos for a portion of casino revenues. The amount of money to be gained is between $200 million and $500 million per year. However, this battle has been going on for years with no quick resolution in sight — and it wouldn’t fill the budget gap, anyway.

We offer a solution.

The producers and sellers of marijuana offer the state of California at least one billion dollars in additional tax revenue every year – and nobody is arguing.

What will this do?

It can fill the current California budget gap all by itself. No more disputes about what to cut and the legislators can take the summer off.

It can fund rapid transit.

It can fund welfare for the elderly and disabled.

It can fund drug education programs in schools and other drug abuse prevention efforts.

It can fund prisoner treatment programs, thus reducing crime and saving even more tax dollars in the future.

It will stop needless prosecutions of sick people for marijuana offenses.

It can provide for safe and well-regulated medicinal marijuana supplies for the sick.

It will stop the transfer of billions of dollars per year to foreign criminal gangs.

It will boost local economies.

It will get marijuana out of the criminal underground.

It can provide for regulations on product quality, content and warning labels, and product liability insurance.

It will save billions of tax dollars currently spent on useless criminal prosecutions for marijuana.

It will free up police and courts for addressing real crime issues.

It will help the balance of foreign trade and boost the value of the dollar internationally.

The Marijuana Producers and Distributors of California make a simple request:

TAKE OUR MONEY PLEASE!

Now before I get into my opinion on the matter, let me say I do not use marijuana nor does anyone in my close circle of friends and family. So I have no agenda here.

With that said, I think legalizing marijuana is a phenomenal way to not only help get us through this severe recession, but to also wipe out our enormous federal deficit. Aside from the multi-billion dollar tax revenues the government would receive from marijuana becoming a cash crop, legalizing it would also save billions of dollars in the costs of enforcing the laws against it and prosecuting (and imprisoning) those who violate the laws.

I realize this is a “touchy” subject. There is no doubt that marijuana is harmful to those who use it. But is it any more harmful (or addicting, for that matter) than alcohol? Most studies suggest that it is not, and that in fact alcohol may be the more harmful of the two. Here is one link suggesting this. Simply google “alcohol vs. marijuana” and you will find countless others that say the same.

I understand this is a slippery slope. “Where does it end” is a fair question in this debate. For example, once we legalize marijuana, is cocaine next? Heroin? Acid? This is something we would have to clearly establish before the move is made. Where is the line drawn and what is off limits for this legalization. We would also have to put restrictions on it similar to alcohol, with an age limit, etc.

Whether you agree with the legalizing marijuana or not, one thing is very clear in this matter, we are losing the ”war on drugs“. In my opinion, if the people who want to smoke marijuana are going to do it whether it is legal or not, and there is evidence to suggest that it is not more dangerous than other drugs that are currently legal, why should the government not earn significant money off it?

What are your thoughts? Do you think this is something that should be seriously considered? Are you comfortable with legalizing marijuana if it meant a strong boost to our struggling economy?

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