A survey of 1,000 U.S. residents, 497 from legal states and 503 from non-legal states, found the vast majority of respondents were in favour of legalizing cannabis federally.
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A new poll conducted by Bloom & Oil, a cannabis education website, offers insight into how U.S. residents from legal and non-legal states view cannabis.
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The company surveyed 1,000 U.S. residents, 497 from legal states and 503 from non-legal states, about their attitudes and beliefs about cannabis.
Overall, the poll found the vast majority of respondents were in favour of legalizing cannabis federally.
Currently, cannabis is legal for recreational use in 18 states and the District of Columbia, the Northern Mariana Islands and Guam. Medical cannabis is legal in 37 states and the possibility of federal legalization continues to gain momentum, however slowly.
About 35 per cent of poll respondents from legal states said the plant’s legal status was a key motivation for them to take up residence there, while 36 per cent said they would not consider moving to a state where cannabis remains illegal.
The top perceived benefits of cannabis legalization include increased tax revenue (58 per cent), economic growth (58 per cent) and help for medical patients (43 per cent).
In non-legal states, nearly 70 per cent of respondents said they believe cannabis legalization would produce economic growth and another 57 per cent said they’re likely to move to a state where cannabis is legal.
In 2020, Michigan’s regulated cannabis industry generated US$169 million ($209 million) in tax and fee revenues. A portion of those revenues, US$12,979,050 ($16,254,183), was awarded to the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) to continue its investigation into the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with cannabis.
The survey also notes that, in 2019, the state of Colorado collected more than US$302 million ($380 million) in taxes, with much of that money earmarked for health care, health education, the public school system and substance abuse prevention and treatment programs.
Respondents in legal states also expressed worry about the potential uptick of people driving under the influence and cannabis being consumed by pets and children. According to a recent Canadian study in Drug and Alcohol Dependence, cannabis legalization has not led to a significant rise in emergency visits from traffic-related injuries in Alberta and Ontario, the two provinces that lead the country in cannabis retail stores.
Overall, the new poll found that respondents were in favour of legalizing cannabis federally for a variety of reasons, including personal consumption, economic growth and tax revenue and medical and therapeutic use.
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