Did you vote on legalized marijuana? Regret it? Balancing the state budget by taking from counties.
Local control mixed with thoughts on my own marijuana vote.
I (now) regret strongly my vote on legalizing marijuana in this state. At the time, my thinking was probably similar to that of other voters: not my choice, but if you want to partake, please.
I have come to regret my vote not so much because I changed my mind on whether or not someone that does me no harm shouldn't use it, but more for what the effect on this state has been.
I think that legalized marijuana here has brought some criminal elements to this state because we become a grow center that's a whole hell of a lot closer to neighboring states (where it's still illegal) than, say, Mexico.
I think it has also changed our society greatly by selectively bringing a younger, more liberal crowd to this state (I mean, let's face it, the population of conservative 30 year olds doesn't scream recreational marijuana use) on top of putting out the welcome mat for policy in this state for things like funky fun with magic mushrooms.
If I had this to do over, I would advocate for a NO vote on legalized pot in this state, but push for legalization and/or decriminalization at the Federal level so there would be parity among all states. This strikes me as a good middle path to allow people freedom without the adverse consequences to our politics here.
All this is to preface the articles linked below. It seems that that the Springs is set to vote on a couple things about marijuana.
The first is a referred measure from the city council that forbids recreational marijuana within city limits (and bolsters this against future municipal legislation by embedding this in the city charter).
The second is a (possible--it was awaiting signature verification and I've not seen an update) citizen initiative to allow recreational marijuana stores in town.
In other words it looks like a debate on what to do about marijuana is coming to their ballot.
If you live in the Springs, vote your conscience, but I would leave you with my thoughts above and the following question: if you look at other places around this state has marijuana tax dollars been a net benefit?
Related:
My own town recently faced its own marijuana questions on our last ballot: to allow it and whether to tax it.
The confusing, and seemingly contradictory result (at least to me), of this vote was to allow medical and recreational marijuana but then NOT allow a tax.
In the grand tradition of government, however, the city is back to ask about taxes again. So, Sterling residents will get a chance to revisit whether to tax the marijuana they allowed inside city limits.
I suppose we might as well get some money for it at least.
https://www.journal-advocate.com/2024/08/14/sterling-voters-to-decide-marijuana-tax-range-of-5-10/
Balancing the state budget by taking from counties.
Golly, maybe it's just me, but I wonder if they could have done what families have to do all over this state when they're short. Maybe they could spend less instead of taking from counties?
The Denver Post article below details a lawsuit filed last week by a few Colorado counties over what they allege is the state illegally taking revenues from oil and gas extraction.
Before we get to more details though, let's back up and talk about some prerequisite materials. Our state has a balanced budget amendment and a prohibition against borrowing. So if our state budget has a shortfall, it not only must be addressed, it cannot be addressed by the state borrowing money.
Back to the lawsuit.
Toward the end of the last Assembly session, lawmakers got what they (erroneously) called a "surprise": the state was short a lot of money. If you want more context on why, check out the second link below.
One of the ways the legislators chose to deal with this shortfall was the bipartisan bill linked third below (HB24-1413). I'll leave it to you to read up on the bill, but the essence is as follows:
--Oil and gas companies (among others) pay taxes into a fund as part of their operations.
--These "severance taxes" go to a fund which is supposed to go to the counties where the mineral extraction is to help offset the impacts of this activity.
--The bill takes money out of this fund (thus away from counties) and puts it into the state's general fund so it can be used for other purposes.
--The counties who are losing this money are suing claiming this transfer is illegal (as well as unfair because it's lost revenue at a time when they say their expenses and statewide unfunded mandates are high).
Moves like this have been done before, so in that sense this isn't new. The idea that this is the only way the state could handle this, that they were forced doesn't hold water for me.
I read the lament of Republican Representative Taggart in the Post, after saying he hated having to do it, as necessary to deal with "...some surprises thrown at us at the very end of the session", and my nose wrinkles to minimize the stink of BS.
Look at the attached screenshot of the bill's history. Note that while the bill wasn't fully passed until May it was introduced near to the end of March.
Surprise emergency measure? Hardly.
As I have it above, I think this is the state looking around for money so that they don't have to do what families all over this state have to do when money is tight: cut their expenses and reprioritize.
I wish these counties luck with their lawsuit. We have had four years of growth of government in this state, of thoughtless spending which we'll be stuck trying to figure out how to fund, and it's high time there was some organized pushback.
https://www.denverpost.com/2024/09/05/lawsuit-counties-jared-polis-severance-taxes-douglas-county/
https://coloradosun.com/2024/06/21/colorado-june-revenue-forecast-initiative-108/
https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb24-1413
I voted for legal weed.
I don't consume it, but everything seems to be OK.
I voted in 2012 to legalize in Colorado and ended up living in California in 2016 and voted there too to support it. The way both states implemented legal weed is different in a some ways. Colorado allowed the industry to flourish with less regulations than California did. But because Colorado was one of the first states, it became a haven for transplants of “pot entrepreneurs” and annoying stoners. Turns out the taxes and regulations are so high in California (no pun intended and to nobody’s surprise) that it created an even larger black market than existed when it was illegal.
Marijuana’s legal status in Mexico isn’t illegal anymore by the way. The Supreme Court had a ruling back in 2021 permitting personal possession and a few plants allowed to be grown per person. There are a few shops in the country that sell it although from what I understand it’s mostly CDB supplements and hemp. AMLO, the current President and long accused of cozying up to the cartels, isn’t a fan of the plant though and Congress has stalled on passing laws to actually permit an “industry.”
Honestly my biggest issue with legal weed are the outrageous claims that using it, especially among younger users whose brains aren’t fully developed, is that it causes no harm.