Voters to decide on recreational marijuana initiative

In Montana, medical marijuana was legalized in 2004 through a ballot initiative. This time around, voters will decide if marijuana should be legalized for recreational use among adults 21 and older.

If passed, Montana residents would be able to use and grow limited amounts of marijuana for non-medical purposes starting Jan. 1, 2021.

Advocates tout a controlled and regulated system that has potential to generate millions in annual tax revenue, while opponents argue societal and public safety harms associated with legalization will outweigh any revenue increase, citing data coming in from states such as Colorado, whose residents voted to legalize recreational marijuana in 2012 with retail sales starting in 2014.

On the ballot, Montana residents will see Initiative 190 (I-190), accompanied by Constitutional Initiative 118 (CI-118).

If passed, I-190 would legalize, regulate and tax marijuana sales for adults 21 and over. CI-118 must pass to set the minimum age to buy or use marijuana at 21.

Under I-90, adults would be able to use or possess one ounce or less of marijuana, or not more than 8 grams in concentrated form. It would also allow an individual to grow no more than four mature marijuana plants and four seedlings in a locked area of their residence, beyond public view.

The Montana Department of Revenue would be responsible for regulation. Advertising marijuana and related products would be prohibited under I-190.

Additionally, people serving sentences for an act allowed by I-190 may request resentencing or an expungement of the conviction.

As part of I-190, non-medical marijuana would be taxed at 20%. The ballot initiative states 10.5% of the tax revenue will go to the state general fund, with the rest going to conservation programs, health-care costs, substance-abuse treatment and prevention, veterans’ programs, and localities where marijuana is sold.

ACCORDING TO a University of Montana Bureau of Business and Economic Research study released in September, the 20% tax has potential to generate between $43.4 and $52 million annually. Over a five-year period from 2022 to 2026, the study projects a total of $236.4 million in revenue.

The independent study was commissioned by Helena-based New Approach Montana, the political campaign behind the pro-legalization efforts, to quantify the potential size of the recreational marijuana marketplace in Montana. The bureau does not endorse or oppose any ballot initiatives, according to a press release from the University of Montana.

Tourism sales would be an important source of the tax base, with authors of the study noting more than 15% of visitors traveling for leisure to states with legalized recreational marijuana, visit retail stores.

“We estimate that in 2022, sales of recreational cannabis to tourists will generate almost $5.9 million in tax revenue. By 2026, the projected revenue could climb to $16.8 million,” said study co-author Robert Sonora, associate director at the Bureau of Business and Economic Research.

To put the question of legalization directly to voters, New Approach Montana gathered more than 50,000 signatures to put I-190 on the ballot, and 80,000 signatures for CI-118, quite a feat during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Pepper Petersen, spokesperson for New Approach Montana.

“[It took] 200 people and six weeks,” Petersen said, in what would usually take months.

New Approach Montana was formed in October 2019 when Coalition406 joined with the national Marijuana Policy Project, which is headquartered in Washington, D.C. To date, the campaign has reported receiving $6.96 million in cash and in-kind contributions, with the highest contributors being North Fund and New Approach PAC, according to the Montana Commissioner of Political Practices.

“If we can take a state like Montana and get recreational use legalized, it shows conservatives even accept these policies,” Petersen said.

Petersen said he became involved in the issue of legalization as a medical marijuana patient when he got kidney disease. He said he realizes the value of legalizing recreational marijuana for people who don’t want to get a medical marijuana card.

“I’ve gone around Montana and talked to thousands and thousands who don’t want to get a medical marijuana card because they don’t want to be on a list and veterans locked out by the VA unless they pay another doctor,” Petersen said.

“As an adult you should be able to decide what’s best for you,” he said. “None of the apocalyptic predictions opponents lay out, or ‘Reefer Madness’ predictions, have come true. The overwhelming success of medical marijuana programs are part of that,” Petersen said.

“We have a year for the rulemaking process. We know it needs to be done,” he said.

BOBBY LONG, the owner of Flower medical marijuana dispensary, supports legalizing cannabis for recreational use. However, he does not support I-190. He believes the initiative was crafted with too much involvement from out-of-state interests.

Long, who operates two dispensary locations in Evergreen and Missoula, said the 20% tax is too high, describing it as a “sin tax.” The initiative wouldn’t change the 4% tax on medical marijuana.

“The economic impact is undeniable,” Long said. “I think the biggest concern in my mind is I’ve seen recreational programs from a distance over-tax cannabis. I’ve seen lawmakers get giddy for tax revenue. It’s happening right now. The tax markup makes it so expensive and nobody can buy it, it becomes a joke. You’ll have a whole bunch of people growing a Schedule 1 substance, and now have nowhere to sell it and have massive black market activity.”

As a medical marijuana provider since 2008, Long also started out as a patient. He began growing marijuana to relieve back pain.

“I say cannabis is medicine for anybody that chooses to consume it as an adult,” Long said. “If taxed, it certainly shouldn’t be done at a higher rate.”

He also wonders if it’s too soon for recreational users to come on the scene and possibly tarnish the public’s perception of marijuana as a medicine versus a lifestyle product.

“We fought really hard to come up with a working system for medical cannabis. One that works for patients and one that works for businesses and providers. We’re still getting established. We have a program that’s not offensive and I think the community accepts it.”

THE HELENA-based Montana Contractors Association, whose membership consists of general contractors, subcontractors and suppliers, opposes the ballot initiatives.

“On a construction site, safety is the first and foremost important thing,” said David Smith, executive director of the Montana Contractors Association. “We feel legalizing a Schedule 1 drug does not help a worksite be safer.”

Smith said right now, there is an extreme workforce shortage and finding employees is difficult.

“If there is another hurdle, i.e., being sober on the job, makes it even more difficult,” Smith said, in addition to concerns how it affects mental health for workers in a job that can already be isolating when workers are often on the road.

The association has contributed financially to the Wrong for Montana campaign launched by Billings car dealer Stephen Zabawa to oppose legalizing recreational marijuana. According to the Montana Commissioner of Political Practices, the committee has reported receiving $78,375 in cash and in-kind contributions.

“I fail to see how introducing recreational marijuana makes anything safer in Montana,” Smith said.

Looking at states such as Colorado, Smith said the effects of legalized recreational marijuana extend beyond the construction industry.

“Drug cartel activity has increased, personal insurance has increased, crime has increased, suicide has increased, homelessness has increased, societal costs have increased, youth use has increased [compared to the national average],” Smith said, gleaning information from a 2019 report on the impact of marijuana legalization in Colorado, compiled by the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Strategic Intelligence Unit.

“There’s a cost to our community to introducing a federally banned drug,” Smith said.

The report also shows medical and recreational marijuana taxes made up 0.9% of Colorado’s state budget.

BOTH ADVOCATES and opponents refer to law enforcement resources as an area that will be impacted by legalization.

Currently, at the local level, simple marijuana possession is typically treated with citations and fines versus arrests and jail time, according to Kalispell Police Department Chief Doug Overman.

“To place someone in custody for simple marijuana possession doesn’t happen very often,” Overman said.

In 2019, Kalispell Police Department issued 61 citations for possession; in 2018, 91 citations were issued and in 2017, 82.

“Most marijuana enforcement these days is incidental,” he said, for example, a baggie of marijuana being found during a search on an arrest warrant for a different crime.

Overman doesn’t think legalization will necessarily lessen the burden of law enforcement duties or resources, but rather will shift it to other areas such as impaired driving or illegal use among youth.

According to the 2019 Montana Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 40% of high school student respondents have used marijuana.

Overman and Flathead County Sheriff Brian Heino agreed that legalizing marijuana for recreational use is a complex issue.

“The decision to legalize is a complicated one that is not a simple change in law, but a change in what we all will see in the open,” Heino said.

“This will change our community and state forever from the information on youth use to the increase in crime. The voters will decide whether this is what is right for our state,” Heino added.

Other states considering marijuana measures in November include Arizona, Mississippi, New Jersey and South Dakota.

If legalized, Montana would join 11 states that allow recreational use including: Alaska, California, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington.

Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana.

However, marijuana remains illegal under federal law as a Schedule I substance.