Maryland: Marijuana Legalization Bill Introduced [View all]

[RainDog]

http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/o/51046/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=12769

Lawmakers in Maryland have introduced The Marijuana Control Act of 2014, which aims to legalize the possession, cultivation, and retail sale of cannabis to adults. The proposed legislation removes all criminal and civil penalties for the possession of up to one ounce of marijuana and the personal cultivation of up to 6 marijuana plants by those over the age of 21. The bill would also create a system of retail cannabis outlets, cultivation facilities, and marijuana product manufacturers. Versions are expected to be filed in both the state Senate and the House of Delegates.

"Our experiment with marijuana prohibition has failed,” stated Senator Jamie Raskin at the press conference announcing the bill, “We got ourselves out of alcohol prohibition by regulating and taxing the product, and we should employ the same exit strategy with marijuana. If we can regulate alcohol, we can regulate marijuana.”

According to a 2013 ACLU report, Maryland possesses one of the highest rates of marijuana possession arrests of any state in the country. Maryland arrests over 23,000 individuals for simple marijuana possession every year, at the cost over of 100 million dollars. Despite only constituting 30% of the state's population and having similar use rates to their white counterparts, African Americans account for 58% of the state's marijuana possession arrests.

Polling data, commissioned by the ACLU in 2013, found that 53 percent of Maryland voters support making marijuana legal for adults and regulating it like alcohol. Only 38 percent said they were opposed to this change.

CBS Baltimore link to announcement: http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2014/01/16/maryland-marijuana-bill-will-regulate-tax-cannabis-like-alcohol/