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As Oregon voters consider Measure 91, an initiative on the November ballot that would regulate, legalize and tax marijuana for adults 21 and older, many are looking to how similar laws are affecting Colorado and Washington. Measure 91 supporters Tuesday brought together a panel of experts from those two pioneering states to make the case that marijuana legalization is a winner, with more positives than negatives for states that have taken the step.

Photo: With marijuana legalization, there has been a lot less of this…(wikimedia.org)
(Photo Credit: underworld / Shutterstock.com)

Admittedly, we have not had a lot of time to judge-Colorado began allowing legal, regulated sales only this January and the first marijuana stores in Washington didn’t open until July-but early results have been promising.

In Colorado, the state has already taken in more than $27 million in taxes and fees, with more than $5 million already allocated to building schools. At the same time, violent crime in Denver has declined by 5.2%, even as the state is set to save somewhere between $12 million and $40 million in annual criminal justice system costs, according to the Colorado Center on Law and Policy.

Both a  Drug Policy Alliancesix-month status report and a Brookings Center  report on Colorado’s situation have also found that legalization there is proceeding relatively smoothly, with few bumps.

In Washington state, the reviews are fewer since retail stores just began operating in July (although Brookings has issued a  report), but customers bought $3.2 million worth of legal weed that first month, with sales doubling to more than $6.9 million in August. More than another $6 million worth had been sold in the first three weeks of September. Tax revenues from legal marijuana sales are estimated to reach $636 million over the next five years.

But while Washington retail sales have just gotten underway, the legalization of personal possession has been the law since the beginning of 2013, and the results on that front are remarkable. According to official state court data, the number of misdemeanor marijuana charges against adults dropped dramatically, from more than 5,500 in 2012 to only 120 last year.

The experiences of Colorado and Washington show that-if done correctly-marijuana legalization can be a big winner for other states as well, experts and officials from the two pioneer states said Tuesday.

“People call this an experiment, but it’s time to treat marijuana like the drug it is, not the drug we fear it to be,” said Colorado state Rep. Jonathan Singer, who was one of only two state representatives to endorse Amendment 64. “We have to thank the people for leading; the legislature has been following,” he said.