State Rep. Mark Cardenas, a second-term Democrat from the Phoenix area, introduced legislation to legalize recreational pot and another to decriminalize by reducing penalties for possession.
The first, House Bill 2007, would green light the purchase, consumption and possession of pot to adults 21 and older. You’d also be able to grow up to five plants for your smoking or eating purposes, but you can’t smoke in public and you can’t use a fake ID to purchase or sell to minors, among other regulations that are the same as how the state deals with alcohol.
And it would be similar to how the medical marijuana system functions already—everyone who qualifies could grow their own or go to a dispensary to buy it.
Similar to what is happening in Colorado, Washington state and Oregon, the revenue for the state would explode—this bill plans to tax marijuana at $50 per ounce.
The Arizona Department of Health Services would have the ability to adjust the tax rate annually “to account for inflation and deflation based on the consumer price.” The Department of Revenue would distribute every three months revenues generated by these taxes, which would be broken down as follows: 30 percent to education; 10 percent to health services for use in voluntary alcohol, tobacco and marijuana abuse treatment; 10 percent for the department to develop public education campaigns for youth and adults about the health and safe risks of alcohol, tobacco and marijuana; and the remaining 50 percent would go to the state’s general fund.
As the state faces a $1 billion deficit, and with Gov. Doug Ducey’s plans to suck out millions and millions of dollars from the education fund to alleviate part of this shortfall, that revenue—which would be around $48 million according to a 2014 report by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee—might be what determines the fate of that bill.
Also, a bill signed into law would be much easier to go back to and change in the future if needed. Even groups like Safer Arizona, who are crusading to get a citizens initiative to legalize pot in 2016, argue an initiative is harder to change later—proposed adjustments are required to be approved by 75 percent of the state Legislature.
Mikel Weisser, political liaison for Safer Arizona and former Democratic candidate in Arizona’s Congressional District 4 (he lost to Republican incumbent Paul Gosar last year), along with other Safer members and marijuana advocates, has been at the state Capitol since the 2015 legislative session began last week, meeting with lawmakers, like Cardenas, who support the legalization of marijuana, as well as trying to attract more legislative followers.
He says another bill he’s excited about is HB 2006 (also introduced by Cardenas), which would amend a section in the state penal code dealing with marijuana arrests and convictions.
“Cardenas introduced a similar bill in the 2014 legislative session, which would have made it harder for an average marijuana user to get charged with a felony. That bill didn’t get a hearing,” Weisser says.
In simple terms, the bill would establish lesser punishments for possession of marijuana. Right now in Arizona, if you have less than two pounds of pot, depending on what you were planning to do with it, it all leads to felony charges.
“When you have 16,000 people a year who have their employment ability tarnished by a felony arrest, you are essentially dooming them,” Weisser says. “If these people can’t feed their families, because they lost their earning power, they end up with government assistance.” Quite simply, putting average people away over pot possessions and marking them with that scarlet letter, it ends up becoming a burden to tax payers.
With this bill, for instance, if you are found with one ounce of pot, it’d be considered a petty offense; if you’re found with two pounds or more with intent to sell, the class 4 felony would become a class 3 misdemeanor.
Weisser says there are a few other rumored marijuana-related bills that haven’t been filed yet. And, as of last Thursday, neither one of Cardenas’ bills had more than one sponsor.
“They don’t have to have a bunch of sponsors, but the bills that everybody wants to jump in the bandwagon with have a much easier time than bills that are floating out there on their own,” Weisser says.
The next step is for the bills to be assigned to a committee and be given a hearing.
This article appears in Jan 22-28, 2015.
I for one am completely against this proposed legislation. I will not support his bill or any candidate that votes for it. This is not freedom from governmental abuse but the formula for more and more and more. $50.00 an ounce TAX just where is this going to be collected at point of sale. If the tax can be raised and lowered at will by the ADHS depending on no table no barometer of cost or value I don’t no like the distribution of revenue 10% for education how about 30% for study overseen by a University with at least 10 years established in peer review. If any copy write or intellectual properties come out of this is will belong to the citizens of the State of Arizona.
I do not see one thing in this proposed legislation that helps the Medical patient. I do not see standards put on ADHS on testing at the POS (point of sale) for smoke edibles and very VERY stiff fines and a bond of assurance filed after if product on shelf does not matched labeled percentages and since it is a consumable every piece of product need and has to be tested for accuracy.
I have read this new proposed legislation and for the user it gives away all the right of employment and representation that the current amendment 203 that is protecting the user today. They to scare the user by saying they are going to protect the possessor of 2 LBS or less for not having a felony only a misdemeanor WTF. What about the Medical user went gone here huh.
Lets look in the next 2 years between CO & WA things that don’t get mentioned here. like the huge amounts of product that is sitting on shelves in both the decline and not even close to projected revenue collection as expected. Yes these fancy web pages writers paid for by Publicity agencies (attorneys) contributions to NORMAL and so forth. These are sheep in wolves clothing.
if This legislation goes I would propose a amendment that all product for sale has to go to a state clearing house and all dispensaries will have to buy product from them for standards and continuity of product. Anyone can grow whenever and wherever they proposed as long as security and environment are set they then need to sell all product to a clearing house. This will guarantee strain quality strength contaminants. No the appearance for impropriety and graft and manipulation is to much we need to go to a state clearing house. And for that matter I will give no support to the dispensaries for this kind of back handed Stalinist legislation.
Colorado expected a windfall from MJ taxes. They made money, yes, but not nearly what they expected. Why? They made the tax rate too high. When the taxes make the cost of the legal product too high, people will continue to use their old dealer.
Greed rarely pays, whether in government or the private sector.
Put down the dope and do something constructive with your life.
“Put down the dope do something constructive with your life”
Well 65 raised 4 kids all graduated college and moved to better employment climate. Paid all my taxes and mortgage lived in the same neighborhood for 38 years. Stricken with nerve problems and now an advocate for Medical Marijuana it availability it’s quality, safety, education, understanding and study. How’s that for something constructive since some are the one’s with the scale to measure by…
I have been around so long it makes me very nervous to see this much time and money being spent on someone industry that just want to help.
http://thehill.com/policy/finance/230511-colorado-governor-legalizing-pot-was-bad-idea
Here it is for anyone interested you will have to cut and paste it is to the Colorado State Gov. Annual Summary of last years Marijuana Recreational & Medical program.
http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/CGA-L…
Summary>
1- Reign in caregiver & growers make them register amount and more regulation if they want to keep in business
2- fuse so many more over to the recreational side by eliminating most of the qualifications for a medical exemption
3- allow local county and cities to add a tax to the dispensaries on top of what the state collects with out limits
4- allow for this readjustment annually for market
Look at the Safer Arizona pushing their version $50.00 per ounce tax. Then what will the Counties and Cities charge. The medical needs person will be lost for fruity flavored high THC as that is the recreational and tax market the Government want. The high margin stuff the Dispensaries want. The proposal also states how much percentage will be spent on addiction programs, education, Both are bastions of endless pits of unexplainable funds gone to whatever and who decides that. No monies should go for study on our University level. Tax payer is paying for it is theirs not a subcontracted research or study thing.
We should allow all medical card holders keep their 12 plant (maybe negotiable) even trade between medical card holders
There will be not a tax of any kind levied on a individuals personal grow of 12 viable plants or less.
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