Op-Ed Should Marijuana Legalization Include Interstate Commerce?

[thegreenhand]

Should Marijuana Legalization Include Interstate Commerce?​

Kris Krane
Forbes
1 Sep 2022

Excerpt:

As Congress moves forward with proposals to legalize marijuana at the federal level, with the introduction of the long-awaited Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act and subsequent historic Senate hearings, some questions remain about the details of what federal legalization should ultimately look like. In particular, what has emerged as one of the most contentious details when it comes to federal regulation of cannabis is the question of whether interstate cannabis commerce should be implemented with legalization, delayed for a few years, or barred altogether.

For background, while cannabis is fully legal in over a dozen states across the country, and dozens more for medical use, while it remains illegal under federal law no cannabis products are allowed to cross state lines- no plants, no pre-rolled joints, no edibles, no tinctures, nothing. If it’s made in California it needs to stay in California. If it’s grown in New Jersey then it needs to be consumed in New Jersey. Plainly said, retailers in one state must only purchase products from cultivators and producers in that state, regardless of whether there is consumer demand for out of state products or if wholesale prices are cheaper across state lines.

It also means a company with cannabis business licenses in multiple states must spend millions – and often tens of millions of dollars replicating their entire production infrastructure in each state, rather than scaling up production and using one facility as a central distribution point for retailers across the country. Imagine Starbucks SBUX +1.3% having to grow all of the beans for their Rhode Island stores in Rhode Island, and having to duplicate this model in every state across the country.

 

[thegreenhand]

Forbes articles always give me an error when I try to link to them, so you'll have to google this one on your own. It's a solid read imo

 

[Cheshire_Kat]

Try this link

Forbes article

 

[thegreenhand]

Try this link

Forbes article

Oh sweet , how did you do that lol ?

 

[Cheshire_Kat]

I took the Forbes article link, ran it through "tiny URL" then used the link button.

 

[thegreenhand]

I took the Forbes article link, ran it through "tiny URL" then used the link button.

i'll keep that in mind for the future, thanks