Pa. eyes marijuana to ease budget burdens

Could legalizing recreational use of pot be next for Pennsylvania as it struggles to balance its budget?

The state is swimming in red ink.

Could the answer lie in green plants?

The state auditor general thinks so. That’s why Eugene DePasquale believes Pennsylvania should consider legalizing recreational use of marijuana and then doing what the state does best – slapping a fat tax on it.

Far out, right? Well, that depends on who you ask.

The most recent budget projections show the Commonwealth is staring into the abyss of a budget deficit that is approaching $3 billion. Gov. Tom Wolf, after two grueling budget impasses with Republicans in the Legislature in his first two years, isn’t even talking about another effort to enact new, broad-based tax initiatives such as increases in the state or personal income taxes. That sounded just fine to Republicans who control both the House and Senate. They’re loathe to consider any tax hikes at all, including the governor’s latest pitch for a new levy on the state’s Marcellus Shale business.

That leaves the state in a serious budget hole, without many avenues to turn to crawl out. Wolf is rolling out a series of consolidations and mergers of state bureaucracy, but Republicans are already dubious about the proposed savings there. We don’t blame them.

So how does the state balance the books?

DePasquale believes the state should mimic Colorado and turn to pot.

Pennsylvania already is on the brink of legalized medical marijuana.

DePasquale pointed to numbers that show why they’re talking about “Rocky Mountain High” in a whole new light in Colorado.

They raked in more than $150 million in taxes on pot sales in the first 10 months of 2016. During that same period, sales soared past the $1 billion mark.

The state legalized recreational sale and use of the drug in 2012.

“The marijuana train has rumbled out of the station, and it is time to add a stop in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” DePasquale said.

He believes legalized pot could be a $200-million-a-year source of revenue for the state.

He doesn’t have to convince state Sen. Daylin Leach, D-17. He co-authored the push for medical marijuana and also has introduced bills in the last three legislative sessions going back to 2013. Leach’s Senate Bill 213 would legalize marijuana and allow it to be sold in a system similar to the way state stores currently handle the sale of alcohol in the state.

Wolf, however, has panned the idea, saying it is not the solution to the state’s budget crisis.

“His calculation I think had it about $200 million,” the governor said. “We have a $3 billion deficit, so that’s not going to help.”

But Leach insists it’s time, saying DePasquale was “exactly right” to endorse legalizing recreational use of pot.

And it’s not just a revenue matter. Leach also notes the huge cost to the Commonwealth of enforcing and prosecuting those charged with minor drug offenses such as possession of small amounts of marijuana.

“Legalizing marijuana will create a vibrant new industry in the commonwealth, raise hundreds of millions of dollars in sales and income tax revenue, and allow us to forgo spending tax dollars to arrest, jail, prosecute and imprison those who smoke a plant,” Leach said.

“Every day of marijuana prohibition in Pennsylvania is a day of misguided policy, lost revenue, and ruined lives.”

In the meantime, the state budget deficit continues to grow. So if pot is out, where will Pennsylvania get the money to crawl out of this mess?

The usual suspects. Expect another expansion in legalized gambling, clearing the way for internet gaming; maybe the state will tinker with that other vice, alcohol.

Just don’t look for privatization.

That would be a little too creative.

The state can’t possibly slap another levy on smokers, can they? You never know.

Pennsylvania is fast running out of avenues to tap into for new, desperately needed new revenue.

DePasquale may be on to something.

It just may be “high” time for Pennsylvania to legalize small amounts of pot, while regulating its sale, collecting the taxes – and taking all that revenue to the bank.