High Time for Change

Reason TV has put out a new piece on medical marijuana and the gray area of California law. The video documents how on January 26, 2010, the LA city council passed an ordinance to regulate marijuana dispensaries--effectively mandating that several hundred stores close. Yet without the resources to enforce such changes, close to 800 pot stores remain open for business in LA.

The current global economic crisis, makes this time to that of when the ban was lifted on prohibition in 1933 so that tax revenue could help balance the economy coming out of the Great Depression. For California, a legalization of marijuana would bring in over a billion dollars in tax revenue and help define the laws for medicinal and recreational use. In November of this year, if legislation has not been worked out, California voters will have the opportunity to legalize marijuana for adult use, making a huge step forward for pot legalization, and finally answering questions about zoning of dispensaries and quality control.

A bill has been re-submitted "to legalize, tax and regulate marijuana in California." The new bill, AB 2254, the Marijuana Control, Regulation, and Education Act of 2010 is identical to its predecessor AB 390, which was approved by the Public Safety Committee in January. Because it was introduced last year, AB 390 ran out of time to be heard on this year's calendar.

Image (thumb): "Cannabis IV" by adrian miles on Flickr Courtesy of Creative Commons Licensing.