Kadner: Tax legal pot and pay off pension debt

SHARE Kadner: Tax legal pot and pay off pension debt
marijuana_44422991.jpg

Legal marijuana, tax it heavily and pay down the state’s pension bills, writes Phil Kadner. | AP Photo

AP file

Here’s an idea for 2017: Legalize retail marijuana in Illinois and earmark the tax revenues to pay down the state’s massive $116 billion pension debt.

This state’s Republican governor and Democratic state legislators have completely failed the people of Illinois. Not only have they been unable to agree on a budget, which is their primary job, but their failure to compromise is costing all of us taxpayers more money every day.

OPINION

I’m talking hundreds of millions of dollars in increased interest payments on bonds just to keep this state running, while about $8 billion in unpaid bills remain on the comptroller’s desk.

Those interest payments do nothing to educate our children, repair bridges or reduce crime. It’s tax money that is basically wasted because our elected leaders have failed to do their jobs for decades.

I suggest legalizing marijuana because 26 states (including Illinois) have now passed laws legalizing some kind of marijuana use. Seven of those states have passed laws legalizing recreational marijuana.

Retail marijuana sales became legal in Colorado on Jan. 1, 2014. Original tax revenue estimates of $70 million a year turned out to be conservative. In 2015 the state of Colorado made $113 million from taxes on marijuana sales and estimates for 2016 were more than $140 million.

The state of Washington collected more than $75 million from a variety of taxes on marijuana from July 2015 to June 2016.

According to the Tax Foundation, the nation’s leading independent research organization on tax policy, the state of Illinois could expect to raise $212 million a year with a 15 percent tax on marijuana, $283 million a year with a 20 percent tax and $281 million with a 25 percent tax.

I realize that a large number of people still believe marijuana is a gateway drug, leading to cocaine and heroin addiction.

I would respond that the abuse of prescription drugs poses a much greater health risk to Americans, but given the time of year you might be too drunk or hung over to comprehend that message.

We all know that alcoholism creates all sorts of problems in our society. Parents neglect and abuse their children. People drive who are in no condition to control their cars. Chronic heavy drinking has been associated with heart disease, cirrhosis, high blood pressure and depression, just to name a few health problems.

Adults have been known to spend their entire pay checks at the bar.

We tried Prohibition. It didn’t work. So we tax the heck out of liquor, sell government permits to stores that want to sell it and do our best to make sure people drink responsibly, knowing that’s never going to happen.

Putting aside my marijuana argument, I ask what solution is being proposed to actually solve this state’s massive financial problems?

When and if Gov. Bruce Rauner and House Speaker Michael Madigan ever reach an agreement on how to govern this state, Illinois is going to need lots of additional money to pay down that pension debt, pay our overdue bills and reduce the interest rates on bond issues. Leaders of both political parties agree the state’s system of school funding is broke and in need of reform.

That’s going to mean new taxes of some sort. People don’t like to hear that kind of talk. But the Republican governor has repeatedly acknowledged as much since his election in 2014.

What I’m proposing is a way to raise some of that money while opening up a new industry in Illinois, an industry that’s going to arrive sooner or later. I just think we ought to make it sooner in order to get the edge on neighboring states like Indiana and Wisconsin.

Do I think it’s likely to happen? No.

That’s because political leaders in Illinois have repeatedly demonstrated they are unable to deal creatively with this state’s financial problems. In fact, they have proven themselves incompetent.

So my wish for 2017 is for something different. Hey, the Cubs won a World Series in 2016 and Donald Trump was elected President. Anything is possible, including an Illinois government that actually gets something right.

Email: philkadner@gmail.com

Tweets by @csteditorials

The Latest
A look back at last year’s transfer portal rankings shows Domask wasn’t even among the top 50 transfer prospects on many lists. Lucky for the Illini, coach Brad Underwood doesn’t recruit based on college basketball pundits’ rankings.
In 1983, Gossett became the third Black Oscar nominee in the supporting actor category. He won for his performance as the intimidating Marine drill instructor in “An Officer and a Gentleman” opposite Richard Gere and Debra Winger.
Chances are, if you live in an American city, particularly in the South — the most violent part of the country since forever — these things are familiar to you.
For the first time since 2019, the water taxi will offer daily service between Ogilvie and Union stations, Michigan Avenue and Chinatown.
Busch found an unconventional way to score in the loss to the Rangers.