Pro
Marijuana legalization boosts the economy.
The marijuana industry (adult-use and medical) in the United States could exceed $24 billion in revenue by 2025. [7] For every $1.00 spent in the marijuana industry, between $2.13 and $2.40 in economic activity is generated. [1][2] Tourism, banking, food, real estate, construction, and transportation are a few of the industries that benefit from legal marijuana. [3]
The legal marijuana industry generated $7.2 billion in economic activity in 2016, and added millions of dollars in federal taxes paid by cannabis businesses. [20] One study on adult-use marijuana in Nevada projected $7.5 billion in economic activity over the first seven years of legalization, including $1.7 billion in labor income. [4] A study by the University of California Agricultural Issues Center estimated that the legal marijuana market in California could generate $5 billion annually.
In Colorado, marijuana brings in three times more tax revenue than alcohol. The state raised $78 million in the first fiscal year after starting retail sales, and $129 million the second fiscal year. Washington collected a total of $220 million in tax revenues in its second fiscal year of sales.
Con
Legalized marijuana creates steep costs for society and taxpayers that far outweigh its tax revenues.
Marijuana use harms more than just the person using the drug. [129] Societal costs of marijuana use include paying for increased emergency room visits, medical care, and addiction treatment for the uninsured; more victims of drugged driving accidents; increased crime; and a negative impact on health from secondhand smoke. [78][102]
Annual societal costs from alcohol ($223.5 billion) and tobacco ($193 billion) far exceed the $24 billion in tax revenues they raise. [128][128][131][172] Money raised from legal marijuana taxes generally accounts for less than 1% of a state’s tax revenue. [132][134]
Legalizing marijuana would put one more harmful substance in our society that costs more than the revenue it generates. [130] According to the Pew Research Center, “the most frequently mentioned reason why people oppose legalization is that marijuana generally hurts society.”
