Taxation Regulation of Cannabis

WHEREAS cannabis prohibition efforts have failed to effectively limit the availability of cannabis, especially to our youth; AND WHEREAS cannabis prohibition has created a large financial opportunity that has fueled an increasingly violent illegal market with expanding organized crime involvement; AND WHEREAS academic, law enforcement and health experts, including the Health Officers Council of BC believe that a strictly controlled public health oriented regulatory framework for cannabis control has the potential to reduce rates of cannabis use, raise substantial tax revenue, undermine organized crime and save law enforcement time and expenditures; AND WHEREAS many BC local governments are increasingly affected by the harms of cannabis prohibition e.g. grow-ops, which negatively impact community health and safety; AND WHEREAS BC local governments are increasingly bearing the financial burden of failed policy approaches that emphasize enforcement of marijuana prohibition over evidence-based policies, consuming significant portions of municipal budgets and diverting law enforcement attention away from criminal activities where police involvement can better improve community safety: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that UBCM supports the taxation and regulation of cannabis to address the ineffectiveness and harms of cannabis prohibition.