Marijuana – Page 101 – Family Council

Congressman Westerman Strongly Opposes Marijuana Issue 4

Oct 7, 2022Jerry CoxMarijuanaMarijuana

On Friday U.S. Congressman Bruce Westerman (AR — 04) provided a statement to Family Council saying that he strongly opposes Issue 4, the proposed constitutional amendment that would legalize marijuana in Arkansas.

Legalized recreational marijuana is on the list of last things Arkansas needs, and I strongly oppose it. There are no benefits that can outweigh more traffic deaths, more addiction, more ruined lives, and the long term economic, social, and moral decline that results from legalized pot. Arkansas can do better than that, & I encourage voters to vote NO on pot.

Rep. Westerman joins a growing list of leaders from Arkansas who oppose Issue 4 — including Republican gubernatorial candidate Sarah Sanders, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, former Governor Mike Huckabee, Lt. Governor Tim Griffin, Congressman French Hill, and U.S. Senator Tom Cotton.

As we have said in the past, Issue 4 — the proposed marijuana amendment — makes sweeping changes to Arkansas’ constitution and state laws.

It repeals, replaces, and rewrites several parts of Arkansas’ medical marijuana amendment that voters passed in 2016, it adds new language to other parts of the Arkansas Constitution, and it drastically expands marijuana in every community in Arkansas.

Issue 4 eliminates all taxes on medical marijuana, and it sets a very low tax rate on retail marijuana sales. State and local officials won’t be able to raise taxes on marijuana. City councils and quorum courts won’t be able to regulate marijuana use. The measure effectively writes an unregulated marijuana monopoly into the Arkansas Constitution.

It is unclear just how far-reaching some of Issue 4’s language may be.

A growing body of research underscores the dangers associated with marijuana legalization.

For example, a report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that states that legalized commercial marijuana sales saw self-harm rates rise by 46% among men ages 21 to 39.

In 2020 law enforcement seized more than five and a half tons of illicit marijuana in Colorado intended for the black market, and authorities determined that traffic deaths involving drivers who tested positive for marijuana have increased 138% since the state legalized marijuana in 2012.

All of this underscores what we have said for years: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders Issues Statement Against Marijuana Amendment

Oct 5, 2022Jerry CoxMarijuanaMarijuana

*Photo Credit: Family Council Action Committee via Facebook.*

On Tuesday Republican gubernatorial candidate Sarah Sanders issued a statement opposing Issue 4, a proposed constitutional amendment that would legalize marijuana in Arkansas.

Sanders’s statement says,

I don’t think that with the drug epidemic that we have across this state, frankly across the country, that adding and giving more access to that does anything to benefit Arkansas, so I certainly wouldn’t be supportive of that.”

Sanders is the latest leader to speak out against Issue 4.

In September Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, former Governor Mike Huckabee, Lt. Governor Tim Griffin, Congressman French Hill, and U.S. Senator Tom Cotton issued statements opposing Issue 4.

A growing body of research underscores the dangers associated with marijuana legalization.

For example, a report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that states that legalized commercial marijuana sales saw self-harm rates rise by 46% among men ages 21 to 39.

Marijuana can have damaging effects on adolescent brains — including permanent loss in IQ, difficulty thinking and problem-solving, reduced coordination, and increased risk of psychosis.

As we have said in the past, Issue 4 — the proposed marijuana amendment — makes sweeping changes to Arkansas’ constitution and state laws.

It is unclear just how far-reaching some of these changes may be.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

Group Launches Statewide Campaign Tour Against Marijuana Legalization

Oct 5, 2022Jerry CoxMarijuanaMarijuana

The following is a press release from Family Council Action Committee.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — On Tuesday Family Council Action Committee announced plans for a statewide campaign opposing marijuana legalization in Arkansas.

Family Council Action Committee Executive Director Jerry Cox released a statement, saying, “Today we are launching a statewide tour to urge Arkansans to vote against Issue 4. It’s hard to believe an amendment this bad is actually on the ballot in Arkansas. In the next few days our team will hold meetings in twenty-five cities and towns across the state, where we will urge voters not to legalize marijuana in Arkansas. We are also launching a radio campaign against Issue 4, and we plan to equip and mobilize hundreds of churches across Arkansas to oppose the measure.”

Cox said Issue 4’s language is misleading. “The marijuana industry did not write this amendment to help Arkansans. They wrote it to help themselves. If Issue 4 passes, marijuana businesses in Arkansas will be controlled by owners who don’t even live here, and only a fraction of Issue 4’s piddly sales tax will go toward police officers or cancer research. It’s a misleading amendment that repeals and rewrites large parts of the Arkansas Constitution without fully explaining those changes to the voters.”

Cox said he wants Arkansans to understand exactly what Issue 4 would do. “Issue 4 writes an unrestricted marijuana industry into the Arkansas Constitution. City councils and quorum courts will be powerless to regulate it. State lawmakers won’t be able to raise taxes on it. Law enforcement won’t be able to prevent organized crime and drug cartels from purchasing marijuana businesses in Arkansas. We are calling on the people of Arkansas to vote against Issue 4 this November. Our state simply does not need another drug problem.”

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