SANTA FE – On Tuesday, May 22nd, new polling data about New Mexican’s attitudes towards changes in cannabis policy will be released during a press event at the State Capitol. Results show support for cannabis legalization reaches a new high. Brian Sanderoff, from Research and Polling, Inc., will present the 2018 polling results.
This event will include remarks from Representative Javier Martinez who, along with Rep. McCamley, Rep. Maestas, Rep. Armstrong, and Rep. Rubio, introduced House Bill 312 in the 2018 legislative session. HB312 is a comprehensive bill taxing and regulating cannabis. The bill includes important provisions that: give local jurisdictions local control by allowing them to opt-out of selling cannabis; protect our youth and public safety including allocating funding to assist law enforcement agencies to determine impairment while driving; support a local and sustainable industry that protects our environment; provide worker and employer protections; allocate funding for a community reinvestment project to address the harms prohibition of cannabis has had on low-income and communities of color; and, protect medical cannabis patients and program.
“When it comes to cannabis legalization in New Mexico, it’s not a matter of if, but when,” stated Emily Kaltenbach, New Mexico State Director of the Drug Policy Alliance. “New Mexicans see this as an opportunity to support New Mexico’s economy, the wellbeing of our children, and healthy communities, while repairing some of the harms of mass incarceration that have fallen hardest on Hispanic/Latino, Black and Native people.”
Currently, nine states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for adult use.
Earlier this year, the Drug Policy Alliance released a new report, From Prohibition to Progress: A Status Report on Marijuana Legalization, that shows how and why cannabis legalization is working so far. The report finds that states are saving money and protecting the public by comprehensively regulating cannabis for adult use. There have been dramatic decreases in cannabis arrests and convictions, saving states millions of dollars and preventing the criminalization of thousands of people. Youth cannabis use has remained stable in states that have legalized. Access to legal cannabis is associated with reductions in some of the most troubling harms associated with opioid use, including opioid overdose deaths and untreated opioid use disorders. DUI arrests for driving under the influence, of alcohol and other drugs, have declined in Colorado and Washington, the first two states to legalize cannabis. At the same time, states are exceeding their marijuana revenue estimates and filling their coffers with hundreds of millions of dollars.
Who:
What: Polling data release + press availability with legislators and drug policy reform advocates
When: Tuesday, May 22, 2016 at 10:30 a.m.
Where: Room 305, State Capitol Bldg., Santa Fe, NM
Election Day is around the corner… and we must be prepared to shape the national conversation about drugs. We need 250 donors to come forward before July 31!
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