Massachusetts Legalization Hearing, 3/2/2010, Steven Epstein and Richard Evans

[onojmai]

same price structure is found in other states for retail prices- Colorado and montana- i know legal producers there, and while bulk wholesale price is low, legal brick/mortar retailers keeps price high. lots of the legal grown leaves the state for the black market elsewhere.

you won't see a significant price drop in easter Mass- high demand urban areas with lots of universities will bolster price. retail marijuana prices would likely hover above $300/oz, taxed or not, for high-end product/

[sk176]

grow it for free where??? silly mikecann

[MikeCANN]

@sk176 I'd grow it right in my condo. Not silly.

[CheezeyWeezey]

$100 dollars an ounce is ridiculous. People will just continue to buy illegally. It's that simple.

[MikeCANN]

@CheezeyWeezey You are missing some important points. This bill allows them to lower that tax to ensure that does not happen. And it also allows for grow your own TAX FREE! for personal use. So I say you are wrong, I will not be buying it illegally! I will be growing it legally for myself and legally paying no tax on it! And then when the tax comes down, occasionally buying it legally!

[MMguitar]

@CheezeyWeezey

Incorrect. You don't realize how cheap pot is going to become after legalization when large facilities will be built for the cultivation. Do some searching, businesses will be making plenty of money if they were to sell pot for $35 an ounce.

100 tax + 35 = $135 an ounce

Why would you buy from a shady dealer, with zero quality control, not knowing the strain, not knowing if there are pesticides in it, etc etc when you can pick up quality controlled pot from a specialty shop

[MMguitar]

@CheezeyWeezey

Note: $135 an ounce is INCREDIBLY cheap compared to what prices are. If you're from America you're probably paying over $300 an ounce right now.

[onojmai]

@MMguitar if you look at prices in California, and everywhere else, you see price stabilizes around $200-350/oz depending on where and how it is purchased.

legal clubs in SF and LA etc cost most- $300+ per oz, with varying quality. this marijuana is, generally, taxed (barring unscrupulous business practice). buying on the black market can drop the price slightly, or significantly. more rural areas- the price drops. generally, closer to production areas, or more producers per capita.

[SmylesProduction]

@CheezeyWeezey In mass a ounce goes for like 300-800 lol

[scarr6]

if its legalized, and you grow it, whos gunna tax you?

[MikeCANN]

@scarr6 Nobody unless you plan to sell it. Then you have to pay tax and if you dont and get caught? You deal with MA Dept. of Revenue who are worse than the IRS...But the bill allows tax free grows for personal use!

[adibson]

this really needs to get passed.

[FreeJigsawEarth]

hahaha the m-word.

c'mon yall we've got this.

happy holidays and safe travels yall

fire it up

[drgigglesdoescocaine]

legalize

[420chronmasta]

LEGALIZE!!!

[69ofdoom]

so... it got passed?

[MikeCANN]

@69ofdoom Not yet.

[ladivadivala]

Amazing! I still don't think most people get it. A government has no right to jurisdiction over a plant. Now if any government should happen by chance to create a plant, then obviously they would have the rights over it.  A plant that I can grow in my backyard is my business. Governments deciding what people can eat, drink, or smoke is always going to be wrong even when they make the right decision because it simply is not their right to decide in the first place.

[ladivadivala]

@ladivadivala I don't know about every government on the planet, but I do know that the U.S. government doesn't have any legal right to what people put into their bodies. They have assumed that right based on nothing. They enforce that right that is based on nothing through tacticts that destroy lives. There is no better way to put it than that. The prohibition of anything ultimately destroys live by saying that "With this product only harm can come". Yes by Government Injustice! WAKE UP!

[superskunkfooker]

The best way to get marijuana legalized according to Tim Felger, a canadian cannabis activist, is to protect the rights of those that are against it. That comment stuck with me.

[nederninja]

@superskunkfooker

How does that work in practice? What do you put into the law, or whatever, to "protect the rights of those that are against it"?

[superskunkfooker]

nederninja, for example there may be people that believe in the right to bear arms but they do not use or care about weed, if you support the basic philosophy of liberty then you can win support from people that would have otherwise been against legalization. Support their cause and they will support our cause.

[vop635]

if this gets passed, i would literally cry my eyes out from happiness

[Jsb25704]

I wish I could see some action like this in the lower eastern states, like West Virginia, but to my knowledge no party has came through for the state on the Marijuana issue.

The first step is decriminalization or partial legalization but to get those done we need people and lots of them backing the beliefs in front of congress.

The term is "UNITED WE STAND" and we should use it to the best of our abilities.

[oatbuck]

Taxing marijuana and other prescription drugs is wrong and greedy

$100 a ounce tax ? are you fucking kidding me?

[MikeCANN]

You can grow your own for free! Wrong is forcing me a patient to buy it for $300-500 on the black market and ignoring that this law would allow me to grow it for free with no taxation? Ignoring that this law would allow all my friends to grow it for free and gift me it......

[COD5WAWZK]

@oatbuck 100 an ounce, 50 to grow and whatever the smaller gas stations sell it at, prolly gonna be around 200 for class C, 250 for class B, and 300 for class A, and ull only be able to buy it by the ounce, but whats an ounce of headies cost now? like 350-400? so good deal i think

[MikeCANN]

@oatbuck You dont have to pay tax with this bill if you grow your own for personal use. You think medical patients are going to be paying for it when they can grow it for free?

[oatbuck]

@MikeCANN Yes medical patients will be buying it, regardless of what you think most medical patients can not grow because of health and growing space.

Plus only about 10% of all growers can produce safe medical grade cannabis.

In California selling cannabis to patients is big business.

[ba420ked]

when will they decide weather or not the bill is passed

[MikeCANN]

Should know in next couple of weeks, probably next week, as session for committees closes.

[CameronDubzWTF]

@MikeCANN whats the law? :O

[MikeCANN]

@CameronDubzWTF basically, state could tax sales really at whatever level they want (up or down on what was suggested based on market demand) and personal grows, non commercial would be tax free...

[servicetechtony]

excellent, excellent video. I myself am from california now here in boston, and I really hope that, this being considered the most liberal state, cannabis does mbecome legal. Great video!!!

[dmob420]

i hope weed becomes legal or medical. its not fair. when it comes to a job. a person can drink all they want and have no fear on loosing there job. when you are in your own home, not at work whatever you do on your own time is your business.

why cant i smoke a joint after work instead of a drink. i do not drink and many people drink after work to relax. basicly you should be able to do whatever you want to do after work. thats why we live in america. freedom!! please fix this

[MikeCANN]

And many would pay a markup tax for cannabis. Because if you are a tourist which we'd get more of with his law, you might not know anybody in the city to get it from and not want to buy on the street. You might be between crops. Or want to try a particular strain that you dont have growing....

[HolisticPlantHealth]

good luck getting people to pay $100 an oz , that is ridiculous and will serve to only keep it underground and make the black market continue to thrive. I'd bet with taxes that high the shift will be from DEA going after us for growing and buying to a new name, the MTA (Marijuana Tax Agency) going after people who don' want to be raped by a Tax that is beyond any reason.

[MikeCANN]

No true. Read the bill! It's genius. It legalizes the black market to a certain degree, effectively wiping it out and forcing the govt. to compete with a market that is tax free for personal grows! Meaning everybody and their brother will grow for free, with no tax, and the govt will just have a reasonable small markup for convenience at a store....No taxation for personal non commercial grows. If that's law, then it's over!

[MikeCANN]

If it's no longer illegal to grow your own, it's not a black market but a grow your own and trade market. And nobody will kill or be killed over the value of that cannabis. Just like people grow tomatoes. Sell it in a store, you pay a tax and one that will likely get adjusted down to compete with tax free grows. Tax free grows for non commercial, personal use? There is nothing more important in any legalization bill in my opinion.

[HolisticPlantHealth]

@ Mike Gotta say You're completely right, My comment was based on taking his statement on taxes (call it) on face value and as a whole without seeing the whole. After looking over your bill more I see what your talking about.

[KMascak]

right now it costs $400 an oz for high grade weed in the black market. you have the grower, who sells it by pounds, who sells it by the QP, who sells it by the ounce, who sells it in grams, eighths, or quarters. 5 or more ppl have possesion of MJ b4 it is finally smoked. each of those 5 ppl raise the price so they can make money. If legalized, it would go from the grower straight to the consumer. If the grower charges $100, then add the $100 tax and your only paying $200 for medical grade weed.

[KMascak]

what im trying to say is that black market prices are always jacked way too high because there are no limitations on it. if it is legalized, i believe the price will go down significantly. the government could even slap a $200 tax on it and it would still be cheaper, if not the same price, as the black market price. but im not an expert so idk for sure, just my opinion