Three bipartisan lawmakers are pushing for the legalization of recreational marijuana, saying it will raise millions in revenue and keep people out of prison for nonviolent drug offenses.
The proposal, introduced by Rep. Melissa Ziobron, R-East Haddam, would regulate and tax the retail sale and cultivation of marijuana for use by people 21 years old or older, and would allow the cultivation of six plants per person with a maximum of 12 per household.
Recreational marijuana is legal under state law in eight states: Massachusetts, Maine, Alaska, California, Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.
Reps. Robyn Porter and Toni Walker, both D-New Haven, flanked Ziobron during a Public Health Committee hearing on the issue Tuesday, during which the three lawmakers voiced their support for the proposal.
Ziobron said the drug is safer than alcohol and tobacco, which kill more than 500,000 people per year.
“Marijuana has never caused one fatal overdose,” she said. “Never in 7,000 years of recorded human use.”
Porter said more than 25 million people have been arrested for pot possession since the Nixon administration, costing $1 trillion to prosecute. But she said her support for the bill was never about the economic benefits but rather the social impact.
“In my communities, we call it the new Jim Crow,” she said referring to marijuana-reslated arrests. “It’s just another way to put black and brown people in jail because the only way you can legally have slavery in this country is if you’ve been convicted of a crime and been sentenced to prison.”
Walker added that drug-related offenses often make it difficult for people to find work, parents lose custody of their children, and students lose access to financial aid.
She said that with the Department of Consumer Protection overseeing the cultivation and sale, the state would ensure the drug is used responsibly and safely and would include child-resistant packaging and potency and serving size labels.
There also would be age verification, just as with alcohol, limiting the potential for young people to obtain it, Walker said.
Gary Pozzato, a Vernon resident with glaucoma who participates in the state’s medical marijuana program, credits marijuana with relieved pressure in both his eyes and improved vision.
“I’m not going to go blind because of medical marijuana,” he said, adding that he supports legalization because it will reduce prices due to more competition.
Ziobron said the intent of the bill is to enable communities to opt out and provide a tax benefit to towns that choose to participate.
She added that she wants to protect the state’s medical marijuana program, but it shouldn’t be a monopoly.
Opponents of the bill say marijuana is a gateway drug and will lead to more substance abuse issues.
Multiple lawmakers and members of the public also questioned how driving under the influence of marijuana would be policed.
Amy Parmenter, manager of public and government affairs for the AAA Allied Group, testified in opposition due to a number of traffic safety concerns, including increased fatal crashes, an inability to measure impairment, and additional legal challenges.
Citing studies on the impact of marijuana on driving, she said marijuana at least doubles the risk of causing an accident, and that legalizing the drug will contribute to deaths.
“While some people are focused on revenue to be generated, the real focus should be on public safety and the unintended consequences of legalization,” she said.
Elsa Stone, a retired primary care pediatrician and former president of the Connecticut chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, opposed the bill.
She said that while there are health benefits for adults who use marijuana, it is not a benign drug for younger people.
Research on adolescent brain development has found that brain maturation, especially in the areas that support complex cognitive thought, decision making, and social behavior, is not complete until the early 20s, Stone said.
The effects of marijuana on a developing brain include a decrease in short-term memory, concentration, attention span, and problem solving, she said.
“Any policy that increases use of marijuana by adults will inevitably lead to increased access for adolescents, whatever our intentions,” Stone said.
Ziobron said she would be willing to adjust the age requirement.
A majority of testimony, both written and oral, was in favor of legalization.
