Today I joined a bipartisan coalition of legislators and the Marijuana Policy Project for a press conference at the statehouse in Augusta to endorse a bill to legalize marijuana in Maine.  You can watch the press conference here.

Our support for legalization is grounded in our concerns about the failed War on Drugs.  A recent report published by Congressmen Earl Blumenauer and Jared Polis details some startling statistics.  Marijuana is classified as a Schedule 1 Controlled Substance, on the same level as LSD and heroin for decades, while almost 50% of Americans over the age of 12 report having used marijuana at least once.  An estimated 18 million Americans have used marijuana in the past month.   As the report notes, according to the FBI, over 660,000 people were arrested in 2011 for marijuana possession.

The result of these extraordinary high levels of arrest and incarceration for marijuana use are devastating.  Maine, and indeed the entire country, faces an enormous budget crisis.  Today, the Maine legislature passed drastic cuts to education.  Meanwhile, budgets for prisons and jails are skyrocketing, and Governor LePage has recommended that the state borrow millions to construct a new prison in our state.  The costs of incarceration of non-violent drug offenders are even more devastating to our communities.  Incarceration tears families apart.  Individuals who spend time in prison and jail for drug offenses have limited eligibility for financial aid for education.  They have more difficulty finding work, particularly meaningful work.  Re-integration into communities after incarceration is incredibly difficult.

It makes no sense to jail individuals who use marijuana recreationally or for medicinal purposes.  It is wrong to have a situation where almost 50% of American adults report having used marijuana, and a good many of them serve in positions of prestige across the public and private sectors, while in contrast lower-income users and people of color are disproportionately arrested and jailed for the same activity.

We are proud to join in the effort to support legalization this year.  The time is now to follow in the footsteps of Colorado and Washington and change Maine's marijuana policy.