PUFF, PUFF, PASS THIS BILL

California is at a low point.

With a $40 billion debt and the need to practically ration out water,
maybe Californians just need to chill out and get stoned.

Or at the very least, profit from those who do.

And in the wake of a new stimulus plan aimed to benefit about 117
million families, California could decide to rise from the smoke and
ashes by tapping into the undeniable market for marijuana.

Last Monday, California Assemblyman Tom Ammiano proposed Measure AB
390, which would legalize the cultivation, possession, and sale of
marijuana for anyone 21 and older.

Based on federal government statistics, marijuana is California's top
cash crop, valued at about $14 billion in 2006, which is nearly twice
the combined value of vegetables ($5.7 billion) and grapes ($2.6
billion) -- the state's No. 2 and 3 crops. The fact that an illegal
drug tops both of these mainstream crops deserves a slap on a wrist,
followed by a standing ovation.

It's about time we exchange some greens for all of that
grass.

This law would inject about $13 billion a year in revenue into
California's empty coffers, and we are definitely in no position to
refuse that kind of a drug deal. Ammiano's proposed bill would charge
growers and wholesalers a $5,000 initial franchise fee and a $2,500
annual renewal fee, as well as a $50 tax per ounce for retailers.

Aside from its medicinal uses, this may be one of the few times that
weed can produce hugely active and productive results, as opposed to
late-night Taco Bell binges and neurotic paranoia. Our beloved Mary
Jane could to save our state from financial instability and put us
back on the map again.

Besides saving us from our $40 billion debt, legalizing and taxing
marijuana would make our lives significantly easier. Law enforcement
and prison spending would drop, and police officers would finally be
able to focus on the real issues, rather than chasing after a group
of high-school kids with a measly 20-sack.

In 2007 there were almost 75,000 marijuana-related arrests in
California alone, a number that has steadily increased since then.
Legalizing pot would save millions of dollars spent on these arrests
that could be used on our state's educational and medical systems
instead.

Since 1996, California was the first of 13 states to allow medical
marijuana, according to the Marijuana Policy Project.

Countless cities in California and across the nation have already
started to make some progress, adopting laws making Mary Jane the
lowest law enforcement priority. These cities include Denver,
Seattle, Santa Barbara, Santa Monica and our very own Santa Cruz. In
2004 Oakland took it a step further, requiring pot to be taxed if it
is legalized.

And although President Barack Obama has said he does not favor
legalization of marijuana, he has indicated that he would end federal
drug enforcement agency raids on medical marijuana clubs in states
that allow it.

After Obama's inauguration, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
continued to carry out raids on medical marijuana clubs, despite
Obama's promise. However, this week, Attorney General Eric Holder
stated the Justice Department will no longer raid clubs that are
established legally under state law.

"I know the jokes are going to be coming, but this is not a frivolous
issue, " said Ammiano, a Democrat elected in November after more than
a dozen years as a San Francisco supervisor. "California always takes
the lead -- on gay marriage, the sanctuary movement, medical
marijuana."