Marijuana Legalization could threaten Texas’ pro-business, pro-family identity
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Citizens for a Safe and Healthy Texas is a nonpartisan group, uniting and educating communities on the impacts of marijuana.
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Texas holds a unique pro-growth, business-friendly, family-friendly, family-affordable position in our country. This could be in jeopardy if Texas were to legalize marijuana. Here’s why:
Legal marijuana damages other industry sectors:
Colorado has increasing difficulty hiring Coloradoans, because they can’t pass drug tests.
Liability insurance does not cover incidents caused by workers testing positive for marijuana, which means fewer job candidates.
Companies increasingly hire outside the state; and some have even had to leave Colorado.
Pro-pot litigators constantly challenge drug-free workplace laws and some have won. This means employers must allow drugs in the workplace compromising all forms of safety and resulting in violations of federal drug-free workplace laws.
Raising kids in marijuana-legal states can be dangerous – because youth use increases in legal states, and at the same time marijuana can inflict significant harms on kids. Everyone needs to understand today’s weed (it’s nothing like when you were in high school). Kids may try marijuana whether it’s legal or not, but since 2013, no regulatory policies that protect kids from legal weed have been found to work. Legalization increases access to marijuana for all and decreases perception of harm for all, resulting in population-level increases in marijuana use among 12-17 year olds and 18-25 year olds. States that legalize are effectively saying “marijuana use is more important than kids and families.” Is this a Texas value?
Please know, the velocity with which “normalization” takes over after legalization makes it difficult for parents, schools or communities to react. Kids quickly start to find “all their friends” are using. We hear story after story of families contemplating a move because their kids can’t find friends who aren’t smoking pot.
The national economy needs states like Texas to remain drug-free. More and more businesses seem to be moving to Texas for its strong economy. When they arrive, employers need qualified, sober workers and the employees that move with the company need safe environments for their families. The announcement of a “corporate move to Denver” is becoming nightmarish news for moms and dads raising kids. The Texas economy – one of the strongest and most productive in the US may be damaged if it becomes unfriendly to families.
The marijuana industry tends to hijack state political processes - Few understand how quickly this happens. In addition to massive funding for political candidates, after 6 years, the Colorado state government has passed basically no meaningful legislation to limit the marijuana industry except one – the labeling of products that contain THC with a warning logo. One additional law limits edibles (foods infused with THC) to shapes that will not appeal to kids. However, this law still allows all basic geometric shapes, candy bars, ice cream and sodas. Worse, the law is not enforced. This amounts to basically no change in the marketplace and no consumer protection.
After four years following the enactment of California’s law, only 15% of the marijuana industry has applied for licensing, which leaves 85% of the industry outside the state’s regulatory framework and in the black market.
It takes years for those running Cannabis Control Commissions (departments set-up to build and oversee a state’s regulatory framework) to understand the endless aspects of the marijuana supply chain in order to regulate it. In the meantime, these commissions get staffed with industry insiders who push for frameworks that benefit the industry instead of public health or safety.
Marijuana legalization does not equal social justice - In fact, communities of color get further hurt by legalization. See more on this topic.
Stay aware of pro-pot activities in Texas - follow Texas legislative records. Texas is not an initiative state, so legal weed would have to come through your legislators. https://thecannabisindustry.org/ncia-news-resources/congressional-scorecards/texas/ is a marijuana industry website that monitors legislative records - red means that politician votes against marijuana.
