Pubdate: Sat, 08 Dec 2012
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer, The (PA)
Copyright: 2012 Philadelphia Newspapers Inc
Contact:  http://www.philly.com/inquirer/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/340
Page: A6

CHRISTIE BLOWING SMOKE TO BLOCK MEDICAL POT USE

Now the governor wants to tax marijuana prescribed to relieve cancer 
patients' pain.

Medical marijuana has been declared a prescription drug by the 
Legislature, so why is Gov. Christie trying to charge a sales tax 
when it's purchased? Is it out of spite because he couldn't block the 
legislation? Whatever the reason, it's wrong. Medical marijuana 
should be treated like other prescription and over-the-counter drugs, 
whch means no sales tax would be collected.

The Christie administration jumped on an apparent loophole in the law 
when the Treasury Department announced last week that medical 
marijuana would be subject to a 7 percent sales tax - a potential 
revenue windfall for the state's coffers, but an additional financial 
burden for cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, and other patients 
prescribed marijuana to relieve pain.

Because the 2010 law was silent on the matter, the Christie 
administration decided to take it upon itself to determine the 
"legislators' intent" when they drafted the bill. Treasury spokesman 
Andrew Pratt said, "The sponsors agree it was their intention to tax 
the sale of medicinal marijuana." But four of the legislation's five 
primary sponsors said they were never consulted and never expected 
the drug to be taxed. Nor did they believe it should be.

The administration's heavy hand should also cause a measure of angst 
for New Jersey's large pharmaceutical industry, which now must fear 
the taxman will come after other drugs.

The medical marijuana law has many people wondering if New Jersey is 
about to take a giant leap toward legalizing marijuana for 
recreational purposes as well. But Christie, a former federal 
prosecutor, has vowed to veto any such measure.

If nothing else, the approval of medical marijuana should open the 
door to the honest conversation the entire country needs to have 
about the war on drugs, which has produced dubious results since 
being declared decades ago. Almost half of all drug arrests 
nationally are for marijuana, and nearly 80 percent of those are for 
possession, swelling the nation's prisons.

A Rutgers-Eagleton poll last year found that nearly 60 percent of 
registered voters in New Jersey support relaxing the punishment for 
possession of small amounts of marijuana. Fourteen states, including 
New York and Connecticut, have passed similar measures.

Currently, marijuana possession is a disorderly-persons offense in 
New Jersey, the equivalent of a misdemeanor. It is punishable by up 
to six months in jail, $1,000 in fines, and a criminal record that 
cannot be expunged, which can make it difficult to find gainful employment.

Last month, voters in Washington and Colorado passed initiatives 
making recreational marijuana use legal in their states, with 
reasonable restrictions on age and quantity available.

Christie has proposed requiring mandatory drug treatment, rather than 
jail, for nonviolent drug offenders. But it appears unlikley that the 
former enforcer of federal laws that don't even recognize medical 
marijuana as legal would go along with any effort to decriminalize 
recreational marijuana use.

It's worth noting that Christie opposed the medical marijuana law, 
which was signed by former Gov. Jon Corzine, and he put up roadblocks 
that have delayed its implementation. So far, 318 patients statewide 
have registered for medical marijuana in New Jersey. But only one 
dispensary where it can be legally purchased, in Essex County, has 
been scheduled to open.

The medical marijuana sales tax being imposed by Christie is yet 
another insult to patients already frustrated by the numerous delays, 
says Ken Wolski, executive director of the Coalition for Medical 
Marijuana-New Jersey, an advocate for the patients. He's right. 
Christie needs to order his Treasury Department to rescind its 
decision. If recreational marijuana is ever legalized, tax those 
sales, but don't make a prescribed medication any more expensive than 
it has to be.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom