[Baltimore Sun] Maryland’s legal cannabis sales are thriving: Is that a good thing? | STAFF COMMENTARY
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Earlier this year, Gov. Wes Moore proudly announced that Maryland has raked in record tax receipts from legalized medical and recreational use marijuana sales. “Our new adult-use cannabis market isn’t only generating extraordinary economic activity — it’s also helping us build new pathways to work, wages, and wealth for all,” Moore said, according to the upbeat press release issued in July by his office. The governor was particularly pleased that the sellers included a sizeable number of minority-owned businesses and related tax revenue was helping fund efforts to rehabilitate low-income communities disproportionately harmed by marijuana criminalization.
And while we certainly supported legalization, too (as did the voters of this state through referendum), along with equity goals, we can’t help but wonder: Would the governor or other state officials be similarly bragging about an uptick in sales of tobacco or liquor? We think not. And so it’s useful to remember that one of the reasons to have “sin taxes” — including on legalized gambling which has also seen a recent increase in tax revenue — is to discourage excess consumption. Apparently, it’s not working.
We’re not being prudes here. A new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine warns of the growing threat. Marijuana use has been linked to all sorts of maladies, including cancer and heart disease and lower IQ rates as well as a rise in mental health ills in young people. Now that more than half of states have legalized it in some form, it should come as no surprise that the accompanying public health dangers are rising, too. It appears the “use cannabis responsibly” message isn’t getting through. Shouldn’t that be our first reaction to higher-than-expected tax revenues?
We aren’t interested in going back to the bad old days of criminalized cannabis use. Prohibition didn’t work in the 20th century either. But we’d like to see our elected officials expressing just a modicum of concern on this front. It’s easy to get excited about higher tax revenue, especially at a time when Maryland is seeing projected budget shortfalls and the state’s ambitious long-term public education funding is at risk. We hate to be Debbie Downers, but let’s keep some perspective. Shouldn’t we at least be exploring ways to discourage youth access to cannabis and do a better job of informing the public about the health dangers from its use?
Baltimore Sun editorial writers offer opinions and analysis on news and issues relevant to readers. They operate separately from the newsroom.
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