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STEVE ELLIOTT is the editor behind tokesignals.com, an independent blog of Cannabis news and opinion
Uruguay
Marijuana Will Be Sold Tax-Free To Undercut Drug Smugglers
M
arijuana production and sales will be exempt from taxes in Uruguay, according to government consultants who said the move is to ensure prices remain low enough to undercut competition from the black market. Uruguay’s Congress in December approved a law allowing the legal cultivation and sale of marijuana, making it the first nation to do so, with the aim of wresting the business from smugglers. “The principal objective is not tax collection,” said Felix Abadi, a contractor in charge of developing Uruguay’s Cannabis tax structure. “Everything has to be geared toward undercutting the black market. So we have to make sure the price is low.” Up to six licenses to produce Cannabis legally will be auctioned in the coming weeks. The government is also considering cultivating Cannabis on a plot of land controlled by the army to avoid illegal trafficking of the crop. Both states in the U.S. that have legalized marijuana -Washington and Colorado -- heavily tax it. Or, in Washington’s case, eventually tax it because no marijuana stores have yet opened, more than a year and a half after voters approved I-502, which We have to make sure the price is low, legalizes up to 1 ounce for adults, said Felix Abadi, a but doesn’t allow home growing, contractor in charge of requiring marijuana users to buy developing Uruguay’s from state-licensed stores. Cannabis tax laws. Tobacco and alcohol are heavily taxed in Uruguay, but the official Cannabis trade will be almost entirely tax-free, according to Abadi. Uruguay doesn’t require a law to exempt a product from taxes. According to the policy signed this month by President Jose Mujica, Uruguayans will be able to buy up to 10 grams of Cannabis a week in pharmacies, for between 85 cents and $1 a gram, a price comparable to black-market marijuana.
14/june 2014 FACEBOOK.COM/NWLEAF
Colorado Legal pot sales are on the rise as crime numbers continue dive
W
hen Colorado made history by becoming one of the first two U.S. states to legalize marijuana, opponents claimed this would cause an increase in crime, but as legal sales of Cannabis have increased, crime has gone down in the state. Sales of recreational marijuana reached almost $19 million for March, an increase of almost $5 million from February. The first three months of recreational Cannabis sales have brought in about $7.3 million in taxes for Colorado; add in the taxes from medical marijuana and the total goes to $12.6 million. The state also gets fees through the licensing of growers and sellers; that revenue stream has brought in another $903,000 in the first three months of legal sales. Meanwhile, compared to the same period in 2013, 2014 has seen an overall reduction in both violent and property crimes in Denver since marijuana legalization. Notable reductions were seen in homicide, down by more than 52 percent, and theft from motor vehicles, down by 36 percent. All forms of violent crime saw a reduction during the same period. Meanwhile, Colorado is seeing job growth. At least 13 positions have been created by the industry, from marijuana writers to grow-site operators. Denver’s numbers support findings from a recent peer-reviewed report published in PLOS ONE showing that medical marijuana legalization causes no increase in crime, and might reduce some violent crimes, including murder. PHOTO BY FLICKR/JIKATU & FLICKR/ROBORODENT