Tax Marijuana and Hemp

Floor Speech

Mr. POLIS. Mr. Speaker, there are ongoing negotiations about how to deal with our Nation's budget deficit. And while we need to make the tough cuts as part of the package, we also need new revenues.

One idea for new revenues would be to regulate and tax marijuana and hemp across the country. Fifteen States and the District of Columbia have various level of degrees of medical marijuana or legalized medical marijuana. And yet rather than have any tax at the Federal level that actually produces income, we effectively have 100 percent tax; namely, it's confiscated by the Federal Government if it's discovered.

By reducing the tax rate on marijuana and hemp to be in line with alcohol and tobacco, we will generate tens of billions of dollars for revenue to reduce the deficit, and it won't make marijuana or hemp legal in any jurisdiction in this country where it is currently illegal. It will simply collect revenue from the States that have chosen to go down the route of medical marijuana or marijuana legalization and create revenue for the taxpayers to bring to the table as part of this deficit deal.

I encourage my colleagues to support reducing the marijuana tax.

Source