cannabisnews.com: Denver Considering 5% Tax on Pot Sales
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Denver Considering 5% Tax on Pot Sales
Posted by CN Staff on July 09, 2013 at 11:50:47 PT
By Jeremy P. Meyer, The Denver Post
Source: Denver Post 
Colorado -- Denver Mayor Michael Hancock wants to impose a tax on recreational marijuana to cover the costs of the coming industry that would be roughly akin to the tax burden on a pack of tobacco cigarettes.But marijuana advocates fear excessive taxes could destroy the whole idea around voter-approved Amendment 64 and keep recreational pot users in the black market. "If it is too much tax too quickly, it will kill the transition to the legal market," said Michael Elliott, director of the Medical Marijuana Industry Group. No tax decisions have been decided yet.
In November, Colorado voters will be asked to approve a 15 percent excise tax plus a 10 percent statewide sales tax on all retail pot purchases. The Denver City Council has been discussing adding its own tax and also would have to submit the question to voters. The council must approve the question by the end of August to make it onto November's ballot.Hancock is recommending a 5 percent tax in the first year but said the city should have the flexibility to increase the tax to up to 10 percent. "We believe a 5 percent tax on recreational marijuana will fulfill the city's needs to effectively regulate and enforce this new law while protecting our children and families, supporting public health and ensuring the integrity of our neighborhoods," Hancock said in a statement.SnippedComplete Article: http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_23622157/Source: Denver Post (CO)Author:  Jeremy P. Meyer, The Denver PostPublished: July 9, 2013Copyright: 2013 The Denver Post Website: http://www.denverpost.com/Contact: openforum denverpost.comCannabisNews -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml 
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Comment #6 posted by FoM on July 10, 2013 at 20:33:16 PT
afterburner
Thank you for the article!
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Comment #5 posted by afterburner on July 10, 2013 at 20:15:09 PT
FoM #4
AlterNet / By Kristen Gwynne. 
Why Veterans Struggling with PTSD Want Access to Medical Marijuana.
A new campaign aims to educate the public about PTSD and marijuana's potential to treat it. 
July 10, 2013 
http://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/why-veterans-struggling-ptsd-want-access-medical-marijuana
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on July 10, 2013 at 18:08:03 PT
N.M. Vets Need Better Access to Medical Marijuana
By Patricia Kime, Staff WriterJuly 10, 2013New Mexico -- Medical marijuana advocates in New Mexico launched a campaign Tuesday to protect veterans’ access to cannabis in the state, saying the initiative has national implications as more former troops with post-traumatic stress disorder find relief for their symptoms by using pot.PTSD is a qualifying condition for New Mexico’s medical marijuana program, but former troops often face difficulties obtaining the drug or can be fired from jobs that prohibit its use, according to organizers of the “Freedom to Choose” campaign.Protections for veterans are needed, advocates say, because vets suffer the top two conditions that qualify for medical marijuana in New Mexico — PTSD and chronic pain — more than other populations and often face job discrimination.“You can have the right safeguards, you can create a list of conditions that is limited enough to have the right infrastructure in place, but not so limiting it can cause some patients not to have full access,” said Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham, D-N.M. describing her state’s medical marijuana laws.“I want to do everything I can to promote that model to in all 50 states,” she said.New Mexico is among 18 states, along with the District of Columbia, where medical marijuana is legal.Advocates say the drug eases pain and anxiety related to service-connected injuries and mental health disorders.But the drug remains illegal under federal law and the Uniform Code of Military Justice and is associated with cognitive impairment, respiratory illnesses and addiction, according to the Office of National Drug Control Policy.A 2004 article in the British Journal of Psychiatry found that cannabis use doubles the relative risk among teens and young adults for developing schizophrenia later in life.“Cases of psychotic disorder could be prevented by discouraging cannabis use among vulnerable youths,” wrote lead author Louise Arsenault.Yet some veterans with PTSD credit it as a “lifesaver.” New Mexico resident Augustine Stanley, an Iraq war veteran, was diagnosed with PTSD in 2011. After prescription medications “drove him into a deeper depression,” Stanley enrolled in the New Mexico medical marijuana program in June 2012. He was subsequently fired from his job at the Metropolitan Detention Center-Bernalillo.“It’s sad employers don’t recognize the quality of life this medication gives back to the veterans, and I think we should have quality of life just like everyone else,” Stanley said.According to the Veterans Affairs Department, an estimated 11 percent to 20 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans suffer from PTSD and 30 percent of Vietnam veterans have the condition.In 2010, VA issued a policy that allows patients to use medical marijuana in states where it is legal, although VA physicians are not allowed to prescribe it.Grisham said she’d like to see that regulation overturned.“It pains me that our own veterans hospital still has an extraordinary wait list for palliative care and pain management and very limited access for pre-screening and management of PTSD. This is a tool those professionals need,” she said.Copyright: 2013 www.armytimes.comURL: http://www.armytimes.com/article/20130710/NEWS05/307100029/N-M-rep-Vets-need-better-access-medical-marijuana
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Comment #3 posted by Sam Adams on July 10, 2013 at 14:23:32 PT
tax rate
remember, the political class will never be satisfied with 5% tax, or 10, or 50. They want it all! They want 100% of your personal productivity, and it won't be hard to get it.Just keep raising taxes till we hit 100 - slavery.Remember, every single tax increase is a tangible step toward slavery. Taxes are like taking a piece of the pie - they cannot be increased indefinitely. Eventually they will take 100%, and you are a legal slave.And we're already more than halfway there!!!
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Comment #2 posted by The GCW on July 09, 2013 at 20:38:20 PT
Breck too.
Breckenridge is also likely to put an additional 5% tax on the ballot."Breckenridge eyes 5 percent marijuana tax"http://www.summitdaily.com/news/7248790-113/tax-marijuana-percent-sales
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Comment #1 posted by Richard Zuckerman on July 09, 2013 at 13:32:02 PT:
Seattle Hemp Fest coming in August of 2013:
www.HempFest.org
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