Marijuana Legalization

Will Washington join the move to relax restrictions?

Abstract

Legislatures in four states legalized recreational use of marijuana in 2021, and another removed criminal penalties for possession. In Congress, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer unveiled legalization to repeal the federal pot ban. Marijuana lounges, where people can gather to smoke pot, opened in Illinois. Nationwide, legal marijuana sales exceeded $18.3 billion in 2020, up 71 percent from 2019, and the industry supported the equivalent of about 320,000 full-time jobs. California led the nation with $4.4 billion in sales, up 57 percent from 2019. Marijuana employment jumped by 15,000 in Florida, where medical pot is legal, even as the state lost more than 400,000 jobs overall. Young adults ages 19 to 22 increased their marijuana consumption last year while drinking less alcohol. Pot use also increased among all adults, and among the elderly.

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