“Marijuana & Ohio: Past, Present, Potential”

The title of this post is the title of the fascinating Taskforce report that is to be formally released and extensively discussed at this Thursday, June 11, as the Ohio Marijuana Policy Reform Symposium (details and registration here).  Because I am going to be critically assessing this report at the Symposium, I have gotten to see an advance draft of the long and detailed report which is described as a “research-based public policy review and discussion.”  Because the report is filled with lots and lots of information, I likely will be reading and re-reading the draft nearly non-stop before I talk about the report in a few days.

The draft report, which is even longer and more data-heavy than I had expected, confirms my belief that this Taskforce report will greatly advancw public information and understanding as the debate over marijuana reform heats up in Ohio and nationwide in the months ahead.  Indeed, a letter from the Chair of the Marijuana Policies of Ohio Task Force, Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters, stresses this point at the front of the document:

The question of changing Ohio’s approach to marijuana policy may soon be put before voters – most likely on the November 2015 ballot. The rapid pace of change in marijuana policy across the country, however, has made it difficult to keep up with the experiences, research, and practices occurring in different states. Political arguments from all sides of this debate have made it even more challenging to separate fact from opinion.

As a county prosecutor, I have seen firsthand how ineffective, inefficient, and sometimes harmful, our current marijuana laws are, but I know that voters need more than my perspective – or that of any elected official – to make their decision. Ohio cannot afford to make decisions about marijuana policy and law based on unsubstantiated and often unsupported talk on both sides of the issue. Ohioans need and deserve an honest and in-depth assessment of the positive and negative impacts that ending marijuana prohibition may have, so they can make up their own minds.

It is this need for an honest, fact-based appraisal that led me to chair this Taskforce….

[T]his report does not endorse any issue or side, and it does not recommend Ohioans vote one way or another. Instead, it provides a straightforward collection and analysis of current research, data, and best practices from around the country.

I believe this report will give Ohioans the clear information they need to make informed decisions, in November and thereafter, about potential changes to Ohio’s marijuana policies and laws. I look forward to continuing this important discussion throughout Ohio in the coming weeks and months.

I am very excited to help lead a discussion of this report at the Moritz College of Law later this week. Importantly, there is no charge for attending the Symposium on June 11, but space in the auditorium can get limited so I highly encourage everyone interested in attending to pre-register via this webpage.