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On the Friday before tax day, an annual tradition takes place.
A handful of demonstrators take up their position on the 11th Street bridge overlooking IH-35 in downtown Austin, carrying a wide banner reading "TAX HEMP."
Supporters with the Texas Hemp Campaign argue legalizing and taxing marijuana in the same way the state taxes cigarettes could net Texas a billion dollars a year, as well as save hundreds of millions of dollars in enforcement of marijuana laws.
"I think it would bring a lot of revenue, a lot of business in the state of Texas," said one supporter.
Judging by the honking response of rush hour motorists, the idea has more than a few supporters.
Meanwhile, a few lawmakers inside the Texas Capitol are taking a serious look at reforming at least some of the state's policies on pot.
"We had about 70,000 arrests for marijuana in Texas based on the last stats that we got. Most of those were for very minor quantities of marijuana," state Rep. Harold Dutton, Jr. (D-Houston) told KVUE in a March interview.
Concerned over the enormous cost of incarceration, Dutton filed HB 184, a bill that would reduce the penalty for those caught with an ounce or less from jail time to a fine in most cases.
Another bill filed by state Rep. Elliott Naishtat (D-Austin) would create a legal defense for those using marijuana prescribed for medical reasons. Naishtat emphasizes HB 594 doesn't legalize marijuana, and despite being shot down before, he hopes this year is different.
"Two states have legalized marijuana, Washington and Colorado. I think there's much more of a chance that we'll see some progress this session," Naishtat told KVUE in January.
Naishtat's bill has yet to receive a hearing in the House Public Health Committee, and Dutton's bill was left pending in the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee in March.
The federal government still considers marijuana a dangerous drug. Appearing before a congressional panel in June 2012, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Chief Michele Leonhart testified, "It causes harm because it's young people that are using it."
Either way, marijuana supporters in Austin argue change is inevitable.
"I think just like dominoes slowly, each state will fall," said Warren Crosley with the Texas Hemp Campaign. "Hopefully we're not the last one here in Texas, but I think it's going to happen. I really do."
News Hawk- Truth Seeker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: kvue.com
Author: Mark Wiggins
Contact: kvue.com Austin
Website: Demonstrators advocate legal, taxed marijuana as federal tax day nears | kvue.com Austin
A handful of demonstrators take up their position on the 11th Street bridge overlooking IH-35 in downtown Austin, carrying a wide banner reading "TAX HEMP."
Supporters with the Texas Hemp Campaign argue legalizing and taxing marijuana in the same way the state taxes cigarettes could net Texas a billion dollars a year, as well as save hundreds of millions of dollars in enforcement of marijuana laws.
"I think it would bring a lot of revenue, a lot of business in the state of Texas," said one supporter.
Judging by the honking response of rush hour motorists, the idea has more than a few supporters.
Meanwhile, a few lawmakers inside the Texas Capitol are taking a serious look at reforming at least some of the state's policies on pot.
"We had about 70,000 arrests for marijuana in Texas based on the last stats that we got. Most of those were for very minor quantities of marijuana," state Rep. Harold Dutton, Jr. (D-Houston) told KVUE in a March interview.
Concerned over the enormous cost of incarceration, Dutton filed HB 184, a bill that would reduce the penalty for those caught with an ounce or less from jail time to a fine in most cases.
Another bill filed by state Rep. Elliott Naishtat (D-Austin) would create a legal defense for those using marijuana prescribed for medical reasons. Naishtat emphasizes HB 594 doesn't legalize marijuana, and despite being shot down before, he hopes this year is different.
"Two states have legalized marijuana, Washington and Colorado. I think there's much more of a chance that we'll see some progress this session," Naishtat told KVUE in January.
Naishtat's bill has yet to receive a hearing in the House Public Health Committee, and Dutton's bill was left pending in the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee in March.
The federal government still considers marijuana a dangerous drug. Appearing before a congressional panel in June 2012, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Chief Michele Leonhart testified, "It causes harm because it's young people that are using it."
Either way, marijuana supporters in Austin argue change is inevitable.
"I think just like dominoes slowly, each state will fall," said Warren Crosley with the Texas Hemp Campaign. "Hopefully we're not the last one here in Texas, but I think it's going to happen. I really do."
News Hawk- Truth Seeker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: kvue.com
Author: Mark Wiggins
Contact: kvue.com Austin
Website: Demonstrators advocate legal, taxed marijuana as federal tax day nears | kvue.com Austin
