CINCINNATI — Ohio voters will decide on Election Day whether to legalize recreational marijuana for 21 and older.
On the ballot, the topic will be listed as Issue 2. A "yes" votes means to legalize. A "no" vote means to not legalize, and nothing will change.
While the question is simple, the implications are not.
Tom Haren, a spokesperson for the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, boiled the group’s argument in favor of marijuana into three main categories: ending injustice, expanding medical access and money.
“Marijuana prohibition has been a total failure,” Haren said. “It is still far too easy for somebody to have their life completely upended by one small minor marijuana conviction.”
While medical marijuana is already legal in the state of Ohio, Haren said many patients can’t find doctors to recommend it. The recreational market will allow more patients to access marijuana, he said.
Haren also pointed to the tax benefits of legal marijuana.
Every sale of recreational marijuana would be taxed as followed:
- 10% excise tax
- 5.75% of standard state sales tax
- Plus the local sales tax
Researchers at The Ohio State University say the percentage is among the lowest in the country compared to the other states that have already legalized recreational cannabis.
Haren said the current percentage allows legal businesses to remain competitive with the illicit market.
“What we want to do is put those illicit market drug dealers out of business, and we want to take that tax revenue back from the state of Michigan and bring it back to Ohio,” he said.
Despite this, Ohio Treasurer of State Robert Sprague said the tax rate is “way too low.”
“It doesn’t even begin to pay for all the problems that the state of Ohio is going to have to clean up as a result of the legislation,” he said. “I think it’s just unfair to the taxpayers.”
The same report estimates revenue tax earnings between $276 million to $404 million after five years.
What happens to that money is already decided, as it states on the ballot:
- 36% to the cannabis social equity and jobs fund;
- 36% to the host community cannabis facilities fund;
- 25% to the substance abuse and addiction fund;
- 3% to the division of cannabis control and tax commission fund.
“It's just not a fair deal for the people of the state of Ohio," Sprague said. "And I think they should let the General Assembly try to craft something that's much more fair, and quite frankly, much more responsible."
He said he would like to see the money go back to the general fund, like most of the tax revenue from tobacco and alcohol.
Greene County Sheriff Scott Anger, an opponent of voting yes on Issue 2, said that legalization reduces the quality of life.
“They don’t realize the can of worms that this is going to open up,” he said.
Law enforcement has pointed to data showing a rise in traffic deaths and injuries. Many studies show correlation with legalization, but not necessarily causation.
Anger said that officers don’t have an immediate test to determine whether someone is under the influence of marijuana, short of a blood or urine test. Marijuana can stay in a person’s system for days or weeks.
“We're just worried about the safety, the quality of life and the regulation that this group says they're going to have in this that I don't feel really exists,” he said.
A full list of arguments for and against the measure, posted by the Ohio Secretary of State’s office, can be found on page 5 of this link.
