N<\/span>ew Mexico State Representative Javier Martinez introduced House Bill 312 to tax and regulate marijuana on Wednesday. The bill puts forth a vision of an industry that would support economic growth and begin to dismantle the policies of the war on drugs that have hit New Mexico hard.<\/p>\n Martinez tore into the current state of New Mexico marijuana policy in a statement that followed the bill\u2019s introduction on Wednesday.<\/p>\n \u201cThe war on marijuana has been a miserable failure,\u2019\u2019 said Martinez. \u201cWe spend millions of dollars criminalizing people who use marijuana without seeing benefits to public health or safety. We need to legalize marijuana in New Mexico and stop the harm that disproportionally impacts those who are living in poverty and those who are Black, Native and Hispanic\/Latino.\u201d<\/p>\n Martinez went on to note marijuana convictions can have tragic long-term consequences for individuals and families.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople may lose jobs or be unable to secure employment because of a criminal record. Students who incur a marijuana conviction can lose their student loans,\u201d Martinez said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe punishment doesn\u2019t fit the offense and New Mexicans agree we should remove penalties and instead tax and regulate marijuana,\u201d said Martinez.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Polling data in recent years has shown a big shift in New Mexicans\u2019 views on marijuana policy. A 2016 poll found that 60 percent of the state\u2019s residents are now in favor<\/a> of reforming the current laws.<\/p>\n The Drug Policy Alliance has been leading policy reform efforts in New Mexico for over a decade, including the push for medical marijuana and other harm reduction based practices. Their New Mexico State Director Emily Kaltenbach weighed in on today\u2019s big news.<\/p>\n \u201cNew Mexico\u2019s current marijuana laws are unfair, unpopular and wasteful. Thousands of individuals are arrested for marijuana possession in New Mexico every year,\u201d said Kaltenbach. \u201cIt is a waste of law enforcement resources and taxpayer money when we could have a safe and legal industry creating thousands of sustainable new jobs. Legalizing small amounts of marijuana will also increase tax revenue and remove millions in sales from the criminal market, putting that money into the New Mexico economy.\u201d<\/p>\n Kaltenbach believes if the bill were successful it would instantly create one of New Mexico\u2019s most lucrative industries.<\/p>\n Reformers are calling the bill presented by Martinez, common sense measure that is long overdue. But they aren\u2019t putting too much stock into this incarnation due to the short session. They are primarily excited about the potential to use the legislation as a tool for discussion and a way to move the conversation forward before the 60-day legislative session in 2019.<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t expect the bill to pass this year, but introducing it is important,\u201d said Kaltenbach. \u201cWe also hope to discuss the merits and challenges of marijuana legalization with legislators during the interim session as well as with their constituents. Feedback from these conversations will make for the best, most carefully thought out policy proposal for 2019.\u201d<\/p>\n The Drug Policy Alliance also pointed to their recent report<\/a> that found states are saving money and protecting the public by comprehensively regulating marijuana for adult use. Not to mention there have been, \u201chuge drops in marijuana arrests and convictions, saving states millions of dollars and preventing the criminalization of thousands of people.\u201d<\/p>\n Back in 2007 before the wave of pro-cannabis energy swept across America, then-Governor Bill Richardson signed a bill that made New Mexico the 12th state to legalize medical marijuana not long before hitting the presidential campaign trail. At the time Richardson told the Associated Press<\/a>, \u201cSo what if it\u2019s risky? It\u2019s the right thing to do,\u201d said Richardson, one of the candidates in the crowded 2008 field. \u201cWhat we\u2019re talking about is 160 people in deep pain. It only affects them.\u201d<\/p>\n TELL US,<\/b> are you excited about the future of cannabis in New Mexico?<\/p>\n The post New Mexico Bill to Legalize Marijuana Introduced<\/a> appeared first on Cannabis Now<\/a>.<\/p>\n
While advocates do not expect the bill to pass this year, they\u2019re still excited about the bill\u2019s prospect for moving the needle forward on marijuana legalization in New Mexico. New Mexico State Representative Javier Martinez introduced House Bill 312 to tax and regulate marijuana on Wednesday. The bill puts forthContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[50,80,90,901,124],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23277"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23277"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23277\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23278,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23277\/revisions\/23278"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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\nRead More: New Mexico Bill to Legalize Marijuana Introduced<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"