Connecticut has a proud tradition of home rule, deeply appropriate to The Constitution State.
Today, the decision about where cannabis is accessed by adults 21 and older has been left to individual municipalities.
The real danger has always been an illicit cannabis market that funnels money to criminals who can use it to support their dealing in hard drugs, such as heroin, as well as human trafficking and other illegal activities.
What’s more, where cannabis is legal, adults who choose to partake need not risk black-market interactions or fall prey to cannabis products tainted with dangerous substances.
These facts alone are sufficient to oppose prohibition but there are also compelling reasons to actively support legal sale of cannabis to responsible adults who choose to use it.
When enabling legalization, state lawmakers established a social equity council to incentivize creation of cannabis businesses in neighborhoods most harmed by aggressive, often racist enforcement of the anti-cannabis laws they rescinded.
Already states permitting adult-use cannabis have collected more than $10 billion and their combined annual cannabis tax income is expected to hit $12 billion per year by 2030.
Colorado, the state with today’s highest cannabis tax revenues, for example, has invested the $1.6 billion earned over the past six years in programs ranging from full-day kindergarten to capital construction grants.
They can opt out of allowing certain license types and implement supporting structures at their own pace, evaluating effectiveness every step of the way.