Marijuana sales tax revenues exceeded expectations in Washington state, New Hampshire bans new synthetics, Colombia's FARC rebels say they're ready to move on implementing drug provisions of the long-negotiated peace plan, and more.
Washington State Collected $70 Million in Marijuana Taxes During Its First Year of Sales [19]. As its first year of legal marijuana sales came to an end, state officials reported that pot sales had generated $70 million in tax revenues and that sales are now topping more than $1.4 million a day. The state had originally forecast it would take in about $36 million in marijuana taxes in the first year. More much at the link.
New Synthetic Drugs
New Hampshire Governor Signs Synthetic Drug Ban Bill [20]. Gov. Maggie Hassan (D) today signed into law Senate Bill 106 [21], which bans the sale and possession of new synthetic drugs. Businesses that sell the drugs could be hit with fines and civil violations, while people caught in possession will have their drugs seized and be hit with a fine. The new law goes into effect immediately.
International
FARC Says It's Ready to Move Forward With Implementing Drug Provisions of Colombia Peace Plan [22]. FARC negotiators in peace talks with the Colombian government said they were ready to agree on procedures necessary for implementing that part of the peace plan. "To establish the basis for building a stable and lasting peace it is necessary, among other things, to find a definitive solution to the problem of illicit drugs, including the cultivation for illicit use and the production and commercialization of illicit drugs. One step in that direction, accompanied by other gestures of de-escalation, which in a short time may lead the parties to definitively suspend armed actions, would not only restore the confidence and credibility of the process but would also put it in a new place, safe from pressures and provocations of its enemies," said a communique read by FARC commander Carlos Antonio Lozada, whose real name is Luis Antonio Losada. The agreement on drugs includes three provisions: crop substitution programs, public health efforts toward prevention, and dealing with drug trafficking.
Call for Ecstasy to Be Sold Over the Counter in Australia [23]. A leading Australian pharmacist and a drug policy expert are calling for ecstasy to be sold legally to make it safer. Pharmacist Joshua Donelly, former chair of the Victoria drug policy drug policy advisory committee, and Professor David Pennington said most of the risks associated with ecstasy are a result of users taking adulterated black market pills. "Australians are one of the highest consumers of MDMA in the world, yet we resolutely resist exploring the fact that most of the uncommon ill consequences of its use arise from impurities in the illicitly manufactured drug and the 'illicit', uncontrolled circumstances of its use," Professor Penington said. Donnelly added that ecstasy caused "negligible" harm to users and people around them and was less harmful than alcohol and tobacco.