Getting high in hard times

While everyone can claim hard times, no state has suffered more financial trouble then California.

Recent figures claim that one in 10 people from California are now unemployed, begging an outlook of the future that looks even bleaker than for the rest of the country.

Due to record foreclosures, the recession has hit the Golden State particularly hard, and there is little relief in sight.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency Friday because of the three-year below-average rainfall. Agricultural losses of $2.8 billion are forecasted for this year, accompanied by 95,000 job cuts. As the country’s largest produce supplier, it would seem logical that crops would take the state out of its deficit, not deeper into it.

As luck would have it, California does produce a specifically profitable plant that at present is being sold, but not taxed. If regulated, this product would reside in the same category as Vicodin or Xanax, but would be levied with a “sin tax” such as that on cigarettes and alcohol.

If the state were to collect revenue on this crop, California could see an injection of $13 billion into state revenue.

This crop, of course, is marijuana, which has been socially acceptable in California for the past few years. From the state that brought the hippie and environmental movements, it is no surprise that West Coast inhabitants have little ill will against the weed.

An assemblyman from San Francisco recently introduced legislation that would effectively legalize the cultivation, possession and sale of marijuana for those who are of legal drinking age. This would mean that Cannabis Clubs, as well as bars, would become a popular destination for those looking for thrills on their 21st birthday.

The bill would charge growers an initial franchise fee of $5,000 and a $2,500 annual renewal fee. A $50 tax would be levied per ounce on retailers.

For a state that relies so heavily on income and real estate taxes, it is important that revenue is found elsewhere. As marijuana is fast being recognized as the largest cash crop in California, it is “nonsensical,” as the Marijuana Policy Project California policy director puts it, that weed is not being utilized for tax purposes.

Policy such as this could not come at a better time now that the administration in the White House has changed. This should come as no surprise, as Barack Obama has admitted to his marijuana use as a teen and promised on the campaign trail that he would leave regulation of the drug to individual states.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has alluded that drug raids on pot dispensaries in California will come to a close as the doors are shut on the Bush era.

In a day and age when we recognize that marijuana will not stop you from being president or an Olympic hero, it makes some good American sense to tax the hell out of it.