We need to learn from New Jersey and follow suit.
It’s a good start for the week, the weather is still mild and the snow has yet to visit us. Last week, Connecticut was the first to have a Gubernatorial debate on Cannabis, Social and Criminal Justice Reform. This was a great opportunity to keep the topic of legalization mainstream in the media. This was not the end all event, we need to be the change we desire. The road a head can be bumpy or we can fast-track legalization by demanding our state legislature represent us and learn from our neighbors. There is a lot planned ahead for Hartford in 2018. The more help, the larger presence and community activism we have the more influence we can have.
Phil Murphy: Bill legalizing marijuana on his desk within his first 100 days.
By now you may have heard the great news from our neighbors in New Jersey. New Jersey appears it will be the first to legislatively pass a recreational cannabis bill for adult consumption. Democrat Phil Murphy, who was elected as New Jersey’s next governor, vowed on the campaign to legalize marijuana and use a potential $300 million tax revenue to fund education programs and worker pensions. Where our state fails to have a strong leader as Governor to stand for moral and ethical change, New Jersey has elected someone with great experience, knowledge and the drive to correct the wrongs of prohibition’s false propaganda. All the while, aiding his state, growing a new safe industry and providing long term revenue growth for his state.
If New Jersey follows through on plans to legalize recreational marijuana, analysts believe the Garden State could grow into a $1 billion market. Rough estimates, suggested by the New Jersey Policy Perspective, “Some industry folks are suggesting at least one year to write the regulations. So, bottom line, $300 million a year in [tax] revenue isn’t likely until 2020 at the earliest, but more like 2021.” There are almost 9 million residents in New Jersey.
Getting to $1.2 billion in annual sales by 2021 could be optimistic. New Frontier Data, a company that analyzes the cannabis industry, is more cautious in its sales forecast. It predicts sales wouldn’t top $1 billion until 2023 and could fall short of reaching $1.2 billion by 2025.
New Jersey is the 17th most visited state in the nation.
According to VisitNJ.org, visitors to NJ destinations grew 3.3% to 98.0 million in 2016. Imagine the retail tax revenue from an influx this large of out of state consumers.
Taxes
A study from New Jersey United for Marijuana Reform, a pro-legalization group, and the New Jersey Policy Perspective recommends a phased tax, starting with 5% sales tax the first year, followed by 15% the second year, and 25% in the third. This appears to me as being too high high of a tax rate to effectively nurture the industry. Recreational taxation different from alcohol purchases?
In other states like Colorado, high sales taxes scared away many customers who continue to make illegal purchases. Which is why lawmakers need to be educated in the subject before they create economic policies that destroy the effectiveness of the law. We should want the illegal activity out of cannabis. Let the market drive supply and demand and you can minimize the incentive for illegal sales.
New Jersey could start in late 2019 for statewide sales. Where does this leave Connecticut? We have Massachusetts legal, New Jersey with legal weed on the way, Rhode Island with reciprocity and who knows what they will do. Rhode Island is more progressive in their medical program than Connecticut. They already provide more cost-effective high quality cannabis than what we can legally purchase in a Connecticut dispensary. Cannabis is medicine for patients, it needs to stop being thought of as a boutique luxury, but instead as a life necessity similiar to food, water, housing, and heat.
We should be demanding grow rights while keeping recreational sales and the medical program separate.
Connecticut Representatives and Senators should be on notice. 71% of Connecticut residents support cannabis legalization for adult consumption. What is the hold up? Do you need assistance in gathering information or do you have questions? You need to ask someone with actual knowledge of the subject. Prohibitionist are good liars, be aware.
