Group of People Waving Filipino Flags in Back Lit
Filipino lawmakers are in the midst of a medical cannabis debate not dissimilar to what so many U.S. states have entertained in recent years. On the one hand are medical cannabis advocates who want legalization. On the other are prohibitionists who do not want to see medical cannabis become legal. The tipping point might be potential tax revenues.
Senator Robin Padilla recently addressed his colleagues in a speech designed to highlight the most compelling reason to legalize medical cannabis: helping to close a big gap in the country’s pending ₱5.268-trillion budget. Congratulations go out to him for latching onto the one issue that could sway a compelling number of prohibitionists.
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Tax Revenues Are Streaming In
Padilla and his lawmaker counterparts are well aware of legalized marijuana in other parts of the world. They certainly know what has gone on here. They are aware of states pulling in millions of dollars in tax revenues from both medical and recreational marijuana.
In relation to U.S. lawmakers, we often say they have never met a tax they didn’t like. Rest assured this holds true among politicians the world over. Tax revenues equal power. Ultimately, power is what politicians crave.
For that reason alone, marijuana will never be made illegal in this country again. There is too much money to be made. The same argument Padilla has offered to his Filipino counterparts is being floated in our own congressional halls. Both U.S. representatives and senators hoping to push a decriminalization bill through routinely discuss revenue prospects.
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Taxes Know No Boundaries
At the risk of making this post seem too cynical, taxes no know boundaries. Consider one of the most conservative states in the nation: Utah. The people behind the Utah Marijuana website say that lawmakers resisted medical cannabis until a 2019 ballot proposition forced their hands. But once they had no choice but to implement a medical cannabis program, tax revenues became part of the equation.
Utah’s cannabis tax revenues pale in comparison to states like California and Colorado. Nonetheless, taxes are assessed at nearly every level of the cannabis supply chain. The state reaps its fair share of revenues that are ostensibly put into administering the medical cannabis program. But it is probably a safe bet that the state takes in more money than it needs. The excess goes toward other things.
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We Need the Money
Getting back to the Philippines, it’s clear that the national government needs the money medical cannabis would generate. Padilla seems to feel that his nation cannot sit idly by while other countries reap huge financial windfalls from cannabis legalization. If Filipino lawmakers want to strengthen their economy, they need to make a move. At least that’s Padilla’s position.
One wonders if Padilla realizes what the next logical step is. Let us say his fellow lawmakers approve a plan for medical cannabis. The program is implemented, and the tax revenues start streaming in. It will not take long before someone proposes recreational cannabis. If lawmakers resist, advocates need only flash higher tax revenues in front of their eyes.
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Follow the Money
At issue here is not the merits of medical cannabis as a therapeutic choice. Research clearly shows that cannabis affects the human endocannabinoid system. Limited data also shows valid reasons for choosing cannabis as a medical therapy. But Senator Padilla is looking at cannabis as a revenue generator.
When opportunities to raise taxes become the primary motivation for passing legislation, you are in dangerous territory. Money is a powerful thing. And if you follow it, you find a lot of foolish decisions are made in its pursuit. Filipino lawmakers be warned.
