Taxing and Regulating Marijuana: A Public Health Approach?

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1 Taxing and Regulating Marijuana: A Public Health Approach? Art Way State Director, Colorado Drug Policy Alliance away@drugpolicy.org November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 1 History of Marijuana Reform in Denver and Colorado 2001: Amendment 20 altered the state s constitution to recognize the medical use of marijuana. Colorado voters approved the measure by a majority of 54%. 2005: 54% of Denver residents, almost 59,000 citizens, vote to remove criminal penalties under the Denver Municipal Code for the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana for adults twenty one and older. 2006: 54.5% of Denver residents, almost 85,000 citizens, support a statewide vote to remove criminal penalties for possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by adults twenty-one and older. the statewide initiative failed : 57% of Denver voters, almost 50,000 citizens, vote to make the arrest of adult marijuana offenses the lowest law enforcement priority under the Denver Municipal Code. 2010: HB 1352 requires evidence of distribution in order to indict for felony charges where the individual is possessing less than 12 ozs of marijuana. Simple possession under two ounces considered a petty offense. November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 2 Recap of Amendment 64 A Tax and Regulate Proposal to Amend the CO Constitution Conferring the Right for Adults 21 and up to Use, Possess and Cultivate Limited Amounts of Marijuana. Amendment 64 also Allowed for the State Regulation, Cultivation, Processing, and In- State Distribution of Marijuana and Industrial Hemp. Amendment 64 won with 54.8 percent of the vote. More people supported Amendment 64 than President Obama: 1,291,771 v. 1,238, of Colorado s 64 Counties Supported Amendment 64. November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 3 1

2 Goals of Amendment 64 Redirect law enforcement resources away from marijuana prohibition and toward violent and otherwise harmful crimes Reduce youth access to marijuana and replace the underground market with a system in which marijuana is regulated and taxed similarly to alcohol Bolster Colorado s economy with significant new tax revenue and job creation. Addressing marijuana use as a health issue, not a criminal justice issue: reality based public education as opposed to criminalization. November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 4 Goals of Amendment 64 November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 5 Amendment 64 Signing and Implementation Taskforce December 10, 2012 Governor signed an Executive Order that makes an official declaration of the vote related to Amendment 64. That declaration formalizes the amendment as part of the state Constitution and makes legal the personal use, possession and limited home-growing of marijuana under Colorado law for adults 21 years of age and older. Created a Task Force on the Implementation of Amendment 64 to inform the legislative process and will consider and resolve a number of policy, legal and procedural issues, involving various interests and stakeholders, to implement the new constitutional amendment. November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 6 2

3 Colorado Home Rule: Opting Out of Amendment 64 CO is a home rule state and option for localities to opt out of Recreational Industry was part of the appeal for Amendment cities that have banned recreational cannabis growers and retailers within their borders At least 28 cities have imposed moratoriums on recreational cannabis sales. 34 counties have banned cannabusinesses, 10 have imposed moratoriums, three are banning new outlets but allowing existing medical marijuana centers to convert, and 11 are undecided. Out of 271 municipalities, many still undecided - State law requires local approval before a marijuana store can be licensed, simply waiting and doing nothing amounts to a de facto moratorium. November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 7 Implementation Taskforce Members State Senators and Representatives CO Department of Health CO Department of Public Safety Commissioner of Agriculture Amendment 64 Campaign Medical Marijuana Industry Marijuana Consumer University of Denver CO Department of Revenue Physician (w/ tx experience) CO Criminal and Juvenile Justice Commission CO District Attorney CO Public Defenders Attorney General s office CO Municipal League CO Counties CO Employers CO Employees November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 8 Amendment 64: Implementing Legislation HB A64 Non Consensus Regulatory Bill Licenses and regulates retail marijuana stores, cultivation facilities, products manufacturers, and testing facilities. Provides for occupational licensing. SB HB Prop AA: Passed 65 to 35 HB HB SB A64 Consensus Regulatory Bill Known to many as the consensus bill, this measure includes the Governor s Task Force recommendations that had no strong objections. Tax Bill Excise tax and a retail sales tax legislation Tax Referendum(s) Excise tax on wholesale price of marijuana, state sales tax on marijuana and proposed local tax on marijuana Permissible Inference DUID State 280E Deductions Allows businesses to take state income tax deduction even when those deductions are not permitted by federal law (incorporated into HB ). Child Endangerment Study Creates a workgroup to study drug endangered children in relation to marijuana. November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 9 3

4 Amendment 64 Tax Revenue and Earmarks First 40 million allocated to BEST fund from excise tax 13.3 million collected in million collected as of May of million collected via sales tax 76 million total in taxes, and licensing fees collected in million collected thus far in 2015 November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 10 Governor s Allocation Plan: Youth Prevention SB Our priority is to ensure children under 21 are provided services and education to reduce youth use. School Based Substance Abuse and Prevention Program: $2,500,000 to address mental health and substance abuse prevention in schools by increasing the availability of health professionals in schools (i.e. school nurses). This money would take the form of matching grants distributed to districts that have seen increased incidences of disciplinary actions for drug use and have available programs that can be built upon to increase the availability of health professionals. In addition, the funding would help schools identify and deal with mental illnesses through school nurses, who spend 32% of their time providing mental health services. Three percent of this figure ($75,000) to administer the program. Tony Grampsas Youth Services (TGYS) Program: $2,000,00 to fund community-based programs that focus on youth prevention, including Before and After School Programs, Student Dropout Prevention, and Mentoring. Applications for TGYS funding far exceeded the available funds, leading to the budget request. $3,058,000 for a statewide marijuana education campaign. NOTE, the Don t Be a Lab Rat Campaign was funded out of a separate grant, and is not part of this funding. The state health department plans a multifaceted approach to advancing the prevention of youth use of marijuana in the state. CDPHE will target youth directly with a second phase to the Governor's office campaign reaching across the state and providing support and training to local prevention programs to integrate the campaign into their local prevention efforts. The state will target youth indirectly by educating the adults across the state about the retail marijuana laws and the health effects of use. Specifically, CDPHE will create campaigns that educate adults and marijuana retailers on the laws to prevent youth access and educate parents to use safe storage practices, prevent secondhand smoke exposure for children and to talk to their children about the risks of marijuana use. November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 11 CDPHE s Good to Know Campaign: The Public Health Approach (for Adults) November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 12 4

5 Governor s Allocation Plan: Youth Prevention $903,561 was requested and allocated for the commission of the Healthy Kids Colorado Survey, which increases the availability of youth data. This funding makes participation in the survey possible for all interested Colorado schools. $4,363,807 to provide school-based intervention services related to marijuana. This money would be used to increase the availability of outreach programs for students using or abusing marijuana through the Department s managed care organization (MCO) contracts and behavioral health organization (BHO) contracts. BHOs currently provide school-based prevention and intervention services in 230 Colorado schools, but in there were 1,792 public schools in Colorado. The scope of the program would increase both in number of schools covered and degree of coverage in each school. $2,000,000 for a school-based early intervention grant program. $1,500,000 for substance use disorder treatment services for adolescents and pregnant women. $100,000 for Child Welfare Training: This money funds marijuana abuse-specific training for the Division of Child Welfare, a division of the Colorado Department of Human Services consisting of a group of services intended to protect children from harm and to assist families in caring for and protecting their children." November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 13 Healthy Kids Colorado Survey: 2013 Pre Legalization Data The trend for current and lifetime marijuana use has remained stable since Over half (54.9%) of students think that marijuana is easy/very easy to access. (Better than national numbers) More than half (54.0%) of students think people risk harming themselves from using marijuana regularly. (Better than national # s) CO students perception of harm decreased regarding infrequent use (Worst than national average) Overall, 36.9% of Colorado high school students tried marijuana one or more times in their life (lifetime use). One-fifth (19.7%) of students reported using marijuana in the past 30 days (current use). November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 14 The Public Consumption Issue The Language of Amendment 64: Personal Use of Marijuana. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER PROVISION OF LAW, THE FOLLOWING ACTS ARE NOT UNLAWFUL AND SHALL NOT BE AN OFFENSE UNDER COLORADO LAW OR THE LAW OF ANY LOCALITY WITHIN COLORADO OR BE A BASIS FOR SEIZURE OR FORFEITURE OF ASSETS UNDER COLORADO LAW FOR PERSONS TWENTY-ONE YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER:... (D) CONSUMPTION OF MARIJUANA, PROVIDED THAT NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL PERMIT CONSUMPTION THAT IS CONDUCTED OPENLY AND PUBLICLY OR IN A MANNER THAT ENDANGERS OTHERS November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 15 5

6 Denver City Council Defines Open and Public Use It shall be unlawful for any person to openly and publicly display or consume one (1) ounce or less of marijuana. (1) The term "openly" means occurring or existing in a manner that is unconcealed, undisguised, or obvious. (2) The term "publicly" means: a. Occurring or existing in a public place; or b. Occurring or existing in any outdoor location where the consumption of marijuana is clearly observable from a public place. (3) The term "public place" means a place to which the public or a substantial number of the public have access, and includes, but is not limited to, streets and highways, transportation facilities, schools, places of amusement, parks, playgrounds, and the common areas of public and private buildings or facilities. (c) It shall be unlawful for any person within one thousand (1,000) feet of the perimeter of any public or private elementary school, middle school, junior high school, or high school to display, transfer, distribute, sell, or grow marijuana upon any city-owned street or sidewalk or upon any other property owned by the city. November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 16 Limited Public Use Not Explicitly Banned: 2015 Campaign for Limited Social Use... a measure permitting the consumption of marijuana by individuals twenty-one years of age or older at certain premises that are not private residential property provided that individuals under the age of twenty-one are prohibited from entering any space where the consumption of marijuana is allowed, the owner, operator, or individual in control of the premises has authorized the consumption of marijuana, and the individual consuming marijuana neither smokes marijuana indoors in violation of Colorado s Clean Indoor Air Act nor consumes marijuana in a location where the consumption of marijuana is visible from a nearby public place In essence, indoor vaporizing and back porch smoking wherever business owners allowed for it November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado Limited Social Use Campaigned Pulled in Order to Work with City/State Officials Limited public use primarily a cultural issue Marijuana prohibition at the onset primarily a cultural issue and this cultural contention remains Proponents reference a need for adults to use in a safe environment and stay off the streets Ultimate goal is likely a need for a uniform approach to allow limiting social use with decision makers working with proponents November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 18 6

7 Imminent Concerns Counties and jurisdictions that opt out prevent the goals of A. 64 from happening in their localities Tax Revenue Continuation of the illicit market Industry and inclusion standards Industry as social justice partners? Will money overshadow the criminal justice reform How do we address social use? Access and availability to those under 21 Learning curve regarding edibles Hospital admissions Calls to Poison Control November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 19 Lessons Learned Implementation takes time and foresight Decision makers must be willing to invoke the will of the people when ballot initiatives are involved Proponents must be flexible and willing to concede certain concerns from opponents Implementers must separate cultural prohibition and or cultural aspirations from legal and public policy requirements Public Education should coincide with implementation process Democratic approach and home rule both a blessing and a curse Nothing happens overnight November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 20 Obligatory Memes to End the PPT November 22, 2013 Implementation of Marijuana Reform in Colorado 21 7