Possible Solution to State Deficit?

The United States has a major problem with its budget. With the country out of money many people are hurting and are resorting to desperate measures. Some people who are losing their jobs are turning to unemployment while other are resorting to crime; theft, robbery, or embezzlement. The legalization of Marijuana would help bring the country up out of its hole.

In the beginning of the year the governor said that California is in a state of emergency and that it was our number one priority of things to do for the people. He stated, “The $42 billion deficit is a rock upon our chest and we cannot breathe until we get it off”. California's budget deficit is expected to soar past $40 billion over the next year and a half, the financial and construction industries have been decimated by the housing collapse and unemployment is on the rise.

Taxation of marijuana would help take the country out of its hole. Marijuana is California’s number one cash crop, according to federal estimates, worth double the state’s vegetable and grape crops combined – or about $14 billion a year. In 2005 there were more than 20 million users. As time progresses there will only be an increase of users. The US should at least take advantage of its situation and make something beneficial out of it. The US taxes people on Alcohol and tobacco, why not marijuana? Both alcohol and tobacco are more harmful to the body than marijuana.

Like previously stated in the post “Inmate Overcrowding”, the United States is spending too much money on inmates for non violent offences such as drugs. If legalization of marijuana was passed the state would not have to pay for the holding of a drug offender in prison. As a substitute of throwing a person in prison for possession of marijuana they should have to pay a fee or do community service.
Instead of looking at marijuana as an illegal substance it should be looked at as a possible solution to help bring the economy back on its feet.

1. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-01-15-schwarzenegger-california-deficit_N.htm
2. http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/pressroom/pressrelease/pr022309b.cfm
3. http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxtopics/index.cfm
4. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5819a2.htm

Inmate overcrowding

The prisons in California have had a serious problem with overcrowding in the last decade. Currently California has a population of approximately 36 million while the prison population is at 166,556 and growing. The United States has the highest prison population rate in the world. Drugs make up at least 20 percent of inmates who are incarcerated.

To hold a person in prison can be very expensive and that money is coming from the tax payers. In 2005, the average yearly cost per inmate was $30,929. Since then it has gone up at least another $15,000. Do tax payers really want to be spending this amount of money on each inmate because he was arrested for the possession of marijuana?

With marijuana becoming legal it would makes a difference with the three strikes problem as well. As most people know the three strikes law locks up a criminal for life after three felonies. For many at least one of those strikes is drug related.
New approaches to the problem of crime are needed, but instead, our political leaders keep serving up the same old strategies.

Instead of the state spending their money on building more prisons for the inmates they should be paying more attention on an alternate route because the current one is not working. Marijuana’s legalization would solve a big portion of the overcrowding in prisons. If the state would legalize marijuana and put restrictions on it the government could still keep an eye on those who abuse the drug.


http://www.theinmatelocator.com/California.html
http://skeptically.org/recdrugs/id8.html
http://realcostofprisons.org/blog/archives/2005/03/la_times_overvi.html