Proposal made for Ohio marijuana tax revenue

News Editor
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A state lawmaker has introduced a bill to use a portion of anticipated tax revenues from the sale of adult-use marijuana to fund training for law enforcement personnel.
State representative Cindy Abrams, R-Harrison, held a press conference last week to announce what she described as an $80 million investment over the next two years in the Law Enforcement Assistance Fund, which will be used to fund law enforcement continuing professional training.
“Training saves lives,” said Abrams. “Every one of our law enforcement officers should have access to quality training, and this bill will ensure this is Ohio’s reality with sustainable funding. Training sets law enforcement up for success, increases public safety, and strengthens community relations.”
The bill, as of last week, hadn’t been assigned to a committee.
Ohio voters on Nov. 7 gave strong support to Issue 2, a marijuana legalization initiative on the ballot as an indirect state statute.
Statewide, the initiative received 2.2 million yes votes, or 57 percent of the total, while 1.65 million voters were against the initiative. Locally, the initiative passed easily in Lucas, Wood, Ottawa, and Sandusky counties.
A yes vote supported the ballot initiative to legalize marijuana in Ohio, including:
-Allowing the sale and purchase of marijuana, which a new Division of Cannabis Control would regulate.
-Allowing adults who are at least 21 years old to use and possess marijuana, including up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana and enacting a 10 percent tax on marijuana sales.
-Providing for the creation of five funds in the state treasury: the adult use tax fund; the cannabis social equity and jobs fund; the host community cannabis fund; the substance abuse and addiction fund: and the division of cannabis control and tax commissioner fund.
-Providing for taxation of 10 percent on the sale of adult-use cannabis by dispensaries in addition to usual sales taxes and require that all monies collected from the 10 percent tax levied to be deposited into the adult use tax fund and distributed quarterly as follows: 36 percent to the cannabis social equity and jobs fund; 36 percent to the host community cannabis facilities fund; 25 percent to the substance abuse and addiction fund; and three percent to the division of cannabis control and tax commission fund.