Colorado Amendment 64 was passed Nov. 6, 2012 and was a huge historical moment for both the United States and the world. The amendment legalized cannabis, better known as marijuana, statewide, to be grown and sold by state approved growers and dealers. There are thousands of arguments around the United States about the ethicality and morality of legalizing marijuana, but regardless, the legalization of cannabis has moved the Colorado economy to new levels and helped other aspects of the state.
According to DrugPolicy.org, a website that keeps track of drug statistics, Colorado has seen a turn in several important categories. The violent crime rates in bigger cities, like Denver, have seen their first decrease in the trend since 2013. The Rocky Mountain state has also seen a huge decline in driving accidents and fatalities in what is regarded as some of the hardest driving conditions around the United States. Another huge statistic for Colorado was the improvement in the unemployment rate. When the amendment was originally passed, Colorado’s unemployment rate was 7.7%, ranking 33rd in the United States. As of the last few months, Colorado has moved into 5th place in the states with an unemployment rate of 3.2%.
Perhaps the biggest positive in Colorado’s new system is the sheer amount of tax revenue that the state has been able to get in return. According to the Washington Post, the market for cannabis in 2015 had grown to a stunning 700 million dollar market. 2016 was another breakthrough year for the market. The market climbed to a value of 1.1 billion dollars, with the state collecting over 150 million of that. 2017 is going to climb yet again. The projected market value of cannabis in Colorado is 1.6 billion dollars, but that number is subject to change depending on how the Trump presidency handles the legalization around the country.
In the state of Iowa, there is not much movement towards legalization. Iowa has a bill proposed for reducing jail times regarding possession and use of marijuana, but a bill for fully legalizing cannabis is yet to come. Either way, Colorado has become a symbol for a new era of economic success in the United States.
