Is it time for governments to tax marijuana?
Mayors from eight B.C. communities have joined together to lobby the provincial government to regulate and tax marijuana as part of a strategy to make communities safer, boosting revenues at the same time.
In their letter, the mayors argue prohibition has led to large-scale grow-ops, increased organized crime, ongoing gang violence, and larger police budgets. And they're not alone.
Across the border, Massachusetts legislators are debating a bill that would legalize, regulate and tax the commercial production of marijuana. Colorado and Washington will vote on marijuana legalization initiatives later this year.
Many see this as a win-win for taxpayers: Less money going into the bloated prison system for drug offenders and a new tax coming into public coffers for other worthy projects.
Governments could issue and collect fees for licenses for cultivation, processing, retail sale, and research from farmer-processor-retailers, the economic argument goes.
Past studies estimate that B.C.’s marijuana industry is worth as much as $7-billion per year — making it the province’s largest cash crop, pretty much all of it underground.
"By keeping it illegal, the government is losing out on $2-billion in tax revenues in that province alone. But when one considers that Ontario and Quebec also produce large quantities of marijuana, it becomes clear that, if the industry was legalized, it could become a significant source of revenue," writes Jesse Lines in the National Post.
And many of the folks on this forum see things the same way. But, to tax it, you have to legalize it. Or at least decriminalize it. And that doesn't sit well with those who worry about the slippery slope.
Would it be sold commercially? What would be the age limit for consumption? What, if anything, could be done to prevent Canada from becoming even more of black market for the U.S.?
Do you agree? Is is time to institute a cannabis tax?
By Gordon Powers, MSN Money
Posted by: Bob | May 8, 2012 9:02:39 AM
Why not do this. It would save tons of cash spent on cops! Who earn 100,000 plus a year.
Posted by: PETE | May 8, 2012 5:05:59 PM
Yes it is. It is a weed. Sell it at Rona, just like the tomatoe plants I purchase each spring. Unfortunately, the criminal justice system and the political system in Canada will never allow it. It creates too many jobs. The high cost of buying it on the street also creates billions of dollars being spent into the economy, ( drug dealers spend alot of money ) so the finance dept would also be against taxing it. The only people for taxing marijuana are the taxpayers of Canada and that"s only because somtimes marijuana can be difficult to find easily and at a reasonal price. If you could just go down to the local 7-11 or Save on Foods and pick up some bread and some marijuana it would make those users alot happier, but then Canada would have alot of unionized government employees on EI too.
Posted by: Kilby | May 9, 2012 1:59:50 PM
So many people smoke pot it's time to legalize it, cut the "War on Drugs" costs, eliminate the criminal element, taxes would make governments a fortune. Prohibition didn't work and neither is the war on drugs. Eliminating the gangs alone would benefit all of society as a whole.
We tolerate alcohol and pot is certainly less trouble to police................
Posted by: world guy | May 10, 2012 3:07:33 AM
MAKE IT LEGAL TO GROW AND USE, NO MORE DRUG CRIMES SIMPLE AND EASY. THE CONS ARE TOO ENTRENCHED TO SEE THIS.
Posted by: Qeyes | May 10, 2012 6:45:17 AM
It only took 14 years to realize prohibition did not work, whats it going to take 140 years to wake up and realize the current War On Drugs is not the answer. Lets get our heads out of the sand, regulate it like alcohol and move on I mean its a plant for Christs sake just like tabacco, it grows on this plant naturally.
Posted by: al. | May 10, 2012 7:02:18 AM
No innocent clean people want to stink ;
TOTAL BANN IS NEEDED ASAP .
Posted by: al. | May 10, 2012 7:05:17 AM
Build more jails to put these clowns in .
Anyone who has anything to do with pot
let them stink there .
Posted by: al. | May 10, 2012 7:07:42 AM
jail pot users for life .
that would be clean shit .
Posted by: agent0 | May 10, 2012 7:35:13 AM
To Al..... 3 comments within 5 minutes ! Drinking early today ? What a classic piece of shit you are.
Posted by: Metta | May 10, 2012 7:41:54 AM
Too funny........Idiots say every bag I buy is contributing to crime.......Well, all you drinkers....every bottle you buy contributed to the death of my neighbour's 10 year old daughter by a drunk driver.....
Same difference.
Posted by: Michael | May 10, 2012 8:04:30 AM
Marijuana should not be legalized and sold by the government. In the end the only ones to benefit from that would be the government not pot smokers. What they need to do is decriminalize it so people can grow their own without risk of criminal prosecution. Once people can grow their own they no longer need to buy it from large scale growers thus reducing the criminal element. DECRIMINALIZE NOT LEGALIZE
Posted by: ashley | May 10, 2012 10:34:30 AM
the goverment needs to stop focusing on pot and focus on some real crime like coke and needle junkys thats where all the crime is based on coke and chemicals ive been using pot for many years i used it in school to focus my grades whent from i's and f's to b's so pot is so not the problem we all know our goverment is in dept thats nothing new but why dont they take some good advice and just decrimialize it legalize it i dont care just stop putting inncecent people in jail
the us goverment has been using the information giving by medical marrijawanna to prosicute them i dont think this is right they need that it really shouldn't be illegal alchol and ciggarets are far more harmful i know as well as any pot head that pot is not the problem.i worked in a bar for a few years and alchol is a major contriubuting factor for crime not pot a drunk will kick you ass for just looking at them the wrong way while as a pot head is having a hard time getting the munchies off the table cause they're too far away. i dont agree that they have safe houses for needle junkys but pot heads rote in jail seriously what planet are we on what has this world came too when violent junkies get treated like kings seriously we missed a couple steps here the goverment did it all wrong look up the coke heads and the needle junkys and leave us pot heads alone
and al chill out and smoke one ya cant smell it if your high
and peace to all my fellow pot heads
Posted by: Raven | May 10, 2012 10:57:31 AM
Free trade indeed!
Long as America paints all drugs with the same brush and influences our government to follow their policies then nothing will change. What needs to be examined is who lobbied governments to pursue criminalization and for why.
Posted by: moe | May 10, 2012 11:12:01 AM
ashley, missed a few english classes?
*government *prosecute
*cigarettes
* junkies
*went
*debt
*innocent
*marijuana
*alcohol
*decriminalize
Posted by: Mario | May 10, 2012 12:49:53 PM
Should be taxed and distributed by liquor stores with similar rules. Won't be an increase in consumption because its already readily available... I would also have hard drugs prescribed by doctors and distributed by pharmacies at a price similar to the market price at the moment. This way, doctors could try to intervene and 'cure' let say, 20% of the users. This would reduce criminality and harm by a huge amount because presently, nobody steals to buy a case of beer!
Finally, this will never happen because too many jobs are at risk. the reduction in police, prison guards, lawyers, juges, potliticians would be too 'catastrophic' to consider!!! These groups will do anything to keep things as they are although we all know they don't work (war on drugs going on 40 years...)
Posted by: Sandra | May 10, 2012 1:15:19 PM
Once again...the government have to have their dirty little fingers in a 'money pot'
Hey, while your at it.... why not legalise prostitution.... look at the money they'll make if that profession gets legalised and taxed. Doesn't matter, legal or not, there are still going to be people out there that will continue to 'do their own thing'. There's far more dangerous things out there, than smoking weed. Look at all the alcohol related deaths, prescription drugs, the list is endless.
Pot, natural plant, can't OD... blah blah. Just another money making scheme for the government
AND... does anybody else notice how slowly our rights are being taken from us.... think about it!
Posted by: Sandra | May 10, 2012 1:24:13 PM
'The government is losing out on $2 billion in tax revenues' (BC) writes Jessie Lines.
ITS ALL GREED. I truly believe all they are interested in is LINING THEIR POCKETS" ..... again and again.
Posted by: AO | May 10, 2012 2:01:47 PM
earthship.com
grow your own everything. Live for free. No more bills on electricity, water, sewage, food... FREEDOM from the gov't!!!
And let's ban income taxes. No one should have to pay a fee to go to work! It's wrong. Luxury taxes and taxes and a 90% tax on the wealthy (over $100,000/yr) is all the gov't needs. But then again, that means all those political guys would end up with paycheques like the rest of average people. Wow. Could you imagine how the world would change if the rich weren't in charge anymore?
Posted by: PCB | May 10, 2012 2:23:31 PM
First of all Governments are running out of ideas of what tax grabs they can get so why not is what they say. There abilities to lead have really come to a high time low and if they think this is the answer than I guess we can go lower.
Second of all most don't know rhe ramifications of the affect that pot smoking brings, It causes us to sleep and when we want to sleep we do not want to work. Proof is, check out employers complaints that a % of their absenteeism is due to this even though it is hard to prove. Our society will be lulled to sleep by this drug and is the government (people) ready to absorb the high cost in relations to this? Also being high on this plant makes us neglect our responsibilities of our position in our home and community such as a father to his kids or a mother to hers or a husband wife relation ship, We have enough single parents and orphans running around.
Thirdly people will read this and say "hey, your full of it" and my response to that is "Am I really"?
Just look around and smell the roses of what drugs are doing to our society and see the break ups and the hardships it brings and say is it worth it or can we educate our people into seeing the dangers of this and deal with the fallout as it comes?
Fourthly what is next? Legalize prostatution, contract killing, car thief rackets, distillation of illegal alchohol manufactering, or whatever because these groups are making money and the government (people) are not. What is it about? Is it greed or Moral breakdown of society?
Well you may say I am full of something here, but I lived through this crap and have also seen many lives go down the tube because of it.
I say if you legalize it my caution to you is be ready for the fallout, it will cost you more than what the tax dollars will bring in. I guess this now is in your hands......
Posted by: bob | May 10, 2012 2:42:09 PM
In 1975 I estimated that you could sell 16 bags of pot per 1000 people per week anywhere across this great country. Back then a bag of pot was worth $20.00 The population was about 30,000,000 people. now let us do the math 30,000 multiplied by $20.00 equals $600,000.00 per week, multiplied by 52 weeks equals $31,000,000.00 . At the time our national debt was about $32,000,000.00. So how much have we spent on incarceration and law inforcement since then? No now is not the time to tax pot, it should have been done 35 years ago
Posted by: terry | May 10, 2012 2:55:24 PM
bob...you rock !
Posted by: carl | May 10, 2012 3:01:10 PM
Legalize, regulate the potency, limit access by age and tax the hell out of it but still keep the price below black market. Put the lazy freeloading criminals out of business. They're criminals because they want the fast easy exciting life without having to pay their fair share. And even if they get caught, they still have the easy life... a bed... three meals and no work to do.
This is not about greed on the part of the government its about being logical for once. Everybody wants the forbidden fruit and when its not forbidden there will be a lot less crime and gangs. Therefore less inmates, less police required, less lawyers with big pay cheques from the taxpayer, and less money travelling underground paying no tax. On the up side, revenue from the sale and revenue from the savings which can be directed to health care and education...the important things
Posted by: Roger | May 10, 2012 3:17:34 PM
Only if they give us a tax break on something else. Canadians are being taxed to death.
Posted by: SmokinT | May 10, 2012 3:49:51 PM
Jesus ashley, that's a train wreck of a post. You sure you went to school or did you imagine it?
Posted by: Dean | May 10, 2012 5:14:48 PM
When Holland legalized it they noticed the use of hard drugs and crime went down significantly. Two more good reasons why Canada should do it.
Posted by: Ed | May 10, 2012 5:14:50 PM
Yes only if there is something in place so these people can be charged, while driveing or disturbing the peace ect
Posted by: Ed | May 10, 2012 5:24:11 PM
Yes only if there is some way charge people the same way they do with alcohol related problums.
Posted by: man | May 10, 2012 5:53:49 PM
Has anyone ever heard of someone getiing stoned and going home and beating thier wife to a pulp? all too common for booze!
Posted by: KARL V | May 10, 2012 6:07:47 PM
tax THE CRAP OUT OUT SO THEY WILL SELL TAX FREE ON THE RESERVES .......BOOZE STILL THE NUMBER ONE DRUG BAD FOR THE NORTH AMERICAN FAMILY B......BUT I WITNESS THE STRENGTH OF THIS NEW BC POT AND DENY IT ALL YOU WANT CANADA MEDICAL DOCTORS DONT BACK IT BECAUSE ITS NOT GOOD FOR YOU ,,,,,, ANOTHER REASON TO CHILL OUT AND GAIN WEIGHT ALLONE IS ENOUGH TO SCARE ME AND YES CAN BE GOOD FOR MEDICALL REASON BUT THERE ALREADY A MILLION TAXED DRUGS ON THE SHELF FOR THIS ..... DECRIMINALIZE AND YOUR SAVE TONS OF WASTED TAX DOLLARS.... YES SOME MONEY IS USED BY CRIMNALS THIS AGAIN NOT CONTROLABLE WITH TASK A HAND....MY BIGGEST CONCERN IF TAXED IS ITS SAYING ITS OKAND I WANT MY KIDS TO KNOW ITS NOT ANDI RATHER THEM GETTING HIGH ON LIFE NOT DRUGS SORRY CONCERN PARENT.......I MEET SO MANY SMOKERS THAT SEEM TO WAKE 10 YEARS LATER AND RELIZE THEY HAVE GON ENOWHERE CLOSE TO WHAT THEY COULD OF ....JUST ANOTHER ANCHOR THEY HOPELY WILL DROP AND WAKE UP ...LONG TERM SMOKER HAVE PROVEN SERVE MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEM SKITSIO AND DEPRESSION MY CLOSEST FRIEND SUFFER THIS 4 YEAR HUNG HIMSELF......THERE ALWAYS THE ONE THAT LIVE TO A HUNDRED NO PROBLEM BUYER BEWARE POT OFTEN LACED WITH UNKNOW SUPRISES
Posted by: K | May 10, 2012 6:13:04 PM
I believe this thing should be legalized entirely. I mean, c'mon people; everyone drinks, regardless of the age you're supposed to be. People will do whatever they want to, even if the law is against it. Take Al Capone for example, he was the biggest 'alcohol-lord' in the 20's and 30's because people still wanted to drink and he could get it! Same thing with pot- people are going to smoke it even if it's illegal, and the government's just losing out on money by not taxing it, as well as paying extra to have the drug dealers put in jail, and court costs. The government will never be able to stop people from smoking pot, or doing other more illegal drugs (such as cocaine and heroin) ; the government should try to regulate it instead of just saying 'no'.. cause we can all clearly see how well that's doing!
I'm not saying that everyone should be out getting high; not at all. But people who have medical issues should be allowed the freedom to inhale one of God's plants to make themselves feel better. It's not as if it damages your liver like alcohol, and there's no tar or addictive qualities in it.