Macroeconomics Research Paper: Legal Marijuana and the Economy

Legal Marijuana and The Economy

According to federal statistics, about 94 million Americans have tried cannabis at some point in their lives. That’s 40 percent of the U.S. population age 12 or older. Estimates suggest that about 25 million Americans are active pot smokers, consuming some 31 million pounds of marijuana a year. Yet, according to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Statistics, American taxpayers spend more than $1 billion a year incarcerating citizens for using pot: nearly one out of every eight drug prisoners in the country is locked up for skirting marijuana laws (Debt.org 2015). The American government has spent billions of dollars on the “war” against marijuana. Yet, it is the least lethal drug out there with no recorded overdoses. It also has many other uses besides the THC like, body care products, paper, fabric, textiles, fuel, plastic alternatives, building materials, and many medical advancements. Even with all the useful opportunities and the possibility an absolute advantage, our federal government is fighting back against its citizens wants and needs to keep marijuana illegal. The country needs to and should absolutely take advantage of this potentially huge asset for the country.

Upwards of a twenty-one-billion-dollar average annually is being spent by state and federal governments in the prohibition of marijuana. The majority of this money is being spent on the law enforcement labor hours that are needed for minor marijuana offenses that wouldn’t be a problem if it was legal. Right now, 33,655 state inmates and 10,785 federal inmates are in jail due to the marijuana laws, and we are paying to feed, clothe, and shelter them (David 2014). The amount of money they are using to house and feed these marijuana using “criminals” could just as easily be used to improve our infrastructure or improve the pay for many government employees like police and teachers which in turn would be spent and put right back into our economy....