Although the economic aspect has never been one of the main arguments for the regulation of cannabis, it should not be ignored either. While legalization advances around the world, companies are taking positions in a global market that is very appetizing.
The Spanish reformist tradition has never resorted to the economic aspect to claim the legalization of cannabis. It has always been based on other reasons, from the free development of the individual personality to the fight against drug trafficking, including, of course, the protection of public health.
Despite this, in recent years, the monetary dimension has become another element in the demand for cannabis to be legalized. Logical, since the figures handled by some territories where cannabis is legal are worth taking into account.
Legalization would reduce the black market business, increase the public treasury thanks to taxes and regularize thousands of jobs; in short, it would bring to light the millions of euros that now pass through a black economy, largely controlled by drug trafficking networks.
In short, cannabis should not be legalized only for monetary interests, but it is not trivial to disregard, as another argument in its favor, the boost it would mean for an economy like the Spanish one.
But how much are we talking about? The answer depends on the model that is applied to regulate cannabis. There is no possible comparison between the income generated by the state model in Uruguay and the almost free market model of some US states such as Colorado.
Uruguay, a more social state model
In November 2018, the Institute for the Regulation and Control of Cannabis (IRCCA) estimated the volume of the regulated market in Uruguay, since its legalization in August 2014, at around 22 million dollars.
This amount is insufficient to cover the costs of the IRCCA (structure, production system, distribution and control of cannabis, among other expenses). In short, Uruguay has lost money with legalization.
But the economic aspect matters little in the Uruguayan model because its main objective is to reduce drug trafficking to reduce crime and violence rates.
Spectacular revenues in the US
The situation in Colorado is radically different. The Department of Revenue, which would be its Tax Agency, points out that, since legalization on January 1, 2014 until February 2019, it had received a whopping $927 million in taxes, fees, and income from licensing procedures.
Money from cannabis taxes in Colorado is used to improve the education system, the health system, and the protection of native peoples, among other social projects.
The Department of Revenue announced that the historical turnover (five years) had reached 6 billion dollars. An extremely interesting amount for a state inhabited by just over 5.4 million people.
The income is spectacular in all the American states that have legalized recreational cannabis, such as Washington, California, Oregon, or Alaska.
Wherever we look, the dance of figures is tremendous. The future prospects are already spectacular, thus, the Californian consultancy View Research estimates that in 2025 the global cannabis market will rise to 146 billion dollars.
Given all these dizzying figures, can we predict the volume that this activity would represent in our country? In a future article on our Blog we will try to give a complete answer to this question.
