Del. Englin Calls for Marijuana Study
Lawmakers would look at costs, benefits of selling the drug at ABC stores.
A northern Virginia lawmaker is proposing the state look at selling marijuana at liquor stores.
Del. David Englin (D-45th) is calling for a study to look at the potential costs and benefits of such sales. You can read the full text of his bill here.
The delegate released the following statement to Patch regarding the bill:
“A surprising number of constituents over the years have asked me why, rather than raising taxes, Virginia doesn't just legalize marijuana, regulate it, and sell it in our ABC stores. Selling hard liquor through ABC stores brings in roughly $110 million to $140 million per year for education, health care, public safety, and other core services. Marijuana might do the same.
“Given that we need more revenue and tax increases are a non-starter for the Republican majority in the General Assembly, I thought that now would be a good time to try to find out how much revenue this might bring in. However, I want to be very clear that this legislation would not legalize marijuana. It would simply conduct a study to determine how much revenue potential is out there so we can have an informed and intelligent public policy conversation in the future.”
The Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control operates the state’s liquor stores.
Englin’s bill is currently awaiting a vote in the Rules Committee. He has also introduced a bill calling for the governor to petition the Drug Enforcement Administration to reschedule marijuana from a schedule I to a schedule II drug.
Learn more about Englin's legislative agenda here.
Steven
1:48 pm on Friday, January 20, 2012
Whether or not marijuana is legalized should not be determined by how much tax dollars it can bring in. However, the country is so twisted our lawmakers believe that the legality of something should be based on how much tax revenue it can bring in, completely ignoring the personal rights of individuals. It may take a while but once the baby boomers lose their stranglehold on the government, marijuana will inevitably be legalized-as it should already be. VA will be one of the last to jump the ship though.
Doug
2:02 pm on Friday, January 20, 2012
David -- how about a castle doctrine law this year?
Miss the Snack Bar
5:13 pm on Friday, January 20, 2012
Why stop at marijuana Dave...let's try and legalize it all for a profit. Then you can introduce a bill to put casinos on the Old Town Waterfront.
Francis Buxton
10:05 pm on Friday, January 20, 2012
Honestly, I have difficulty understanding why some people have such a problem with cannabis. (I mean, what's not to love?) But hey, if it's not your thing, no biggie. There's no accounting for taste. (I’m also pretty baffled by the apparent appeal of “Dancing With The Stars.” I mean, even high, that show’s pretty much unwatchable.) But what I REALLY can't understand -- what absolutely boggles my mind -- is the willingness of so many people to use state-sponsored VIOLENCE in a futile attempt to impose their preferences on their fellow citizens. Let's be very clear -- we're not really talking about whether cannabis should be "legal." As the saying goes, "to pass a law means nothing, to enforce a law means everything." So what we're REALLY talking about is whether we should be sending men with guns to arrest non-violent adults and lock them in government cages for the "crime" of possessing some dried plant matter (or engaging in consensual exchanges for its sale). That's the reality of how this asinine law is enforced. And we're still arguing over this in the year 2012?! In America, the country that bills itself as the “land of the free”? And at a time when our national debt has reached 15 trillion? Wow.
Renee Adams
10:41 am on Saturday, January 21, 2012
We're still arguing over all kinds of things that we likely wouldn't be if people were more informed. They'd rather watch "Dancing With The Stars" than watch the incredibly well-done lectures on "Understanding the Brain" by a Vanderbilt professor of neuroscience (from The Teaching Co)... or reading history or science books that would inform them. It's only through an open mind and real fact-based information that portrays all sides of an issue that people can have truly informed opinions. Instead, any peek-in at the comments on almost any website will see completely biased and angry opinions that reflect incredible ignorance. That goes for both sides of the political spectrum; no wonder we have politicians who can't find common ground. They are merely the mirror of our society, but hardly anyone seems to get that. At least Delegate Englin wants to learn more. On another topid: I also wish more would be done to deal with mental illness better... cheaper than our current method of imprisoning those persons. Our U.S. Senator Webb has been trying to introduce legislation to reform our prison system, but who even knows about that. Our own Alexandria Times has a Thomas Jefferson quote on its editorial page that I always shake my head at. Likewise Madison's quote on the front of the Madison building at the Library of Congress. It isn't enough to be able to read... you have to actually read... and read broadly and deeply... and watch tv and films that truly inform.
Brad Todd
10:12 am on Saturday, January 21, 2012
It is stunning that we have a delegate who would waste the paper needed to suggest such a preposterous idea. He knows this is a waste of time. I thought he was an environmentalist? It reflects a lack of seriousness on the part of Del.
Englin and it reflects poorly on our city. It's time for Alexandria to send constructive people to Richmond whose priorities look more like the rest of Virginia's instead of mere genuflections to the kookiest delusions of Alexandria's leftmost fringe.
Francis Buxton
11:49 am on Saturday, January 21, 2012
"Leftmost fringe?" The fact is that support for cannabis relegalization is now the MAJORITY position in this country. It hit 50% in the most recent Gallup poll which has asked the question annually since 1969. And there's nothing "conservative" about cannabis prohibition. Conservatives are supposed to believe in principles like: limited government, individual liberty, respect for the 10th Amendment, opposition to the "nanny-state," and ending hugely-expensive government programs with a proven track record of failure. It's pretty hard to square any of those with support for the war on (some) drugs. (And by the way, I'm not a leftist. I'm a conservative-leaning libertarian. And when I talk about those principles, I ACTUALLY MEAN IT.) It's painfully clear that conservative opposition to drug policy reform stems from the misguided belief that this is a "liberal" position (and must therefore be reflexively opposed). It's not. The war on drugs has been a bipartisan disaster. There's also a very tired "culture war" aspect to conservative opposition. "But only hippies and leftists like pot." Um...no, sorry that's simply not true. And even if pot (or any other drug) is disproportionately enjoyed by leftists, THAT'S NOT A PRINCIPLED REASON FOR CRIMINALIZING IT!. It's also a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy. "Potheads" might be more open to voting for Republicans if Republicans weren't so intent on locking them in cages!
McBrinn
12:41 pm on Saturday, January 21, 2012
Well said Francis.
AVAMOM
2:20 pm on Saturday, January 21, 2012
We are fortunate to have Delegate Englin in our Virginia State House. He is clearly a progressive and intelligent Statesman who seeks to commence much needed public dialog at the Virginia state level of the forty year failed "war on drugs". As he says in his statement, he views this as a process, not an immediacy of change. Time will soon tell soon federal law integrates with or against states on this third-rail matter, but it's not one where our heads realistically can remain stuck in the mud any longer.
I fully support Delegate Englin and my taxpayer money going to investigate marijuana dispersion alternatives and thereafter hopefully decriminalization for small amounts of use. Study after study shows pot is not a gateway drug, is safer than alcohol binging (both on the person and on the roads). I appreciate that this is a volatile issue for many but let us move to it's discussion as it surrounds us all.
lawgal
8:43 pm on Saturday, January 21, 2012
Englin is a hopeless left wing creep whose policies and values are out of place in the Commonwealth. It's high time for him to be replaced.
By the way - secondhand smoke is dangerous to other people, whether it is from tobacco or the controlled substance discussed above. The Democrats fought hard to be able to regulate smoking in Virginia. There is no need to take a step backward by legitimizing more smoke of any sort in apartment buildings or public places.
Francis Buxton
9:12 am on Sunday, January 22, 2012
Compromise? No smoking in public places. And by the way, are you actually still SMOKING cannabis? It's 2012. For God's sake, invest in a vaporizer! Your cannabis will go further and it'll quickly pay for itself.