Marijuana prohibition has been a costly failure and is ending across America because it’s caused far more harm than good.

It has broken up too many families, upended too many livelihoods, thrown too many children into poverty, and has taken a lifetime financial toll on too many Iowans.

Over the decades, tens of thousands of Iowans have suffered irreparable economic and social harm from a criminal marijuana possession conviction. For too many, it has paved the way for a lifetime of economic insecurity. In 2019 alone, more than 5,000 Iowans were convicted of marijuana possession.

Iowa taxpayers are on the hook for tens of millions annually for this failure. Taxpayers pay twice. They pay higher local property taxes as they pick up an enormous financial tab for an unfair policing and criminal justice system. They pay higher state taxes for the cost of the social safety net to support thousands of families that deal with the economic calamity resulting from an arrest or a criminal record.

Since their inception decades ago, Iowa’s marijuana laws have not been equally enforced. Data shows that a Black Iowan is more than 7 times more likely to get arrested for marijuana than a White Iowan even though their usage rates are the same.

Truth is, marijuana is proven to be less toxic than alcohol, has less potential for addiction, and is less likely to contribute to serious medical problems.

For good reason, marijuana laws are being re-examined and reformed across the country.  Fifteen states have decided to regulate marijuana like alcohol including Illinois, Michigan, and conservative South Dakota. Twenty-six states have decriminalized small amounts for adult use.

Meanwhile, Iowa maintains some of the harshest criminal penalties and one of the most expensive and racially biased enforcement in the country. We have the power to end the illicit marijuana market, refocus law enforcement on more serious problems and begin a new chapter in how we control and regulate marijuana use among adult citizens.

We can create thousands of new jobs across Iowa and a significant new revenue stream to support new investments in Black neighborhoods, as well as new investments in mental health, substance abuse and education. We must also erase the marijuana criminal records of thousands of Iowans and help them recover from the negative impact of these unfair laws.

To be clear, some people will have trouble with marijuana. Like alcohol, it can be addressed as a behavioral health problem rather than a criminal justice one.

While a majority of Iowans now support regulating marijuana like alcohol, reform will not come easy. In fact, Republicans are the only ones that can launch a new era of rational and just marijuana policy. We are hopeful that a bipartisan effort will develop to do just that.

On Jan. 6, 39 Iowa elected leaders from across our state publicly and courageously pledged to work for marijuana reform and invited more state and local elected leaders to join our efforts.

If you think marijuana prohibition has caused more harm than good, is a costly waste of your money, is a government infringement on your liberty, or think Iowa’s unequal enforcement of marijuana laws is unjust, it’s time to speak up for change.

—Joe Bolkcom, Democratic state senator from Iowa City