Rockefeller Drug Laws Burden Taxpayers

The burden imposed on New York taxpayers by Rockefeller drug laws
grows each year. While Albany debates incremental reforms, states
throughout the nation have successfully implemented alternatives to
incarceration for nonviolent drug offenders. A study conducted by the
RAND Corporation found that every additional dollar invested in
substance abuse treatment saves taxpayers $7.48 in societal costs.
There is far more at stake than tax dollars.

The drug war is not the promoter of family values that some would have
us believe. Children of inmates are at risk of educational failure,
joblessness, addiction and delinquency. Not only do the children lose
out, but society as a whole does too. Incarcerating non-violent drug
offenders alongside hardened criminals is the equivalent of providing
them with a taxpayer-funded education in criminal behavior.

Turning drug users into unemployable ex-cons is a senseless waste of
tax dollars. It's time to declare peace in the failed drug war and
begin treating all substance abuse, legal or otherwise, as the public
health problem it is. Destroying the futures and families of citizens
who make unhealthy choices doesn't benefit anyone. Students who want
to make a difference should contact Students for Sensible Drug Policy
at www.ssdp.org.

Reference for above-mentioned study: Rydell, C.P. & Everingham, S.S.,
Controlling Cocaine, Prepared for the Office of National Drug Control
Policy and the United States Army (Santa Monica, CA: Drug Policy
Research Center, RAND Corporation, 1994), p. 42.

Sincerely, Robert Sharpe, MPA Policy Analyst Common Sense for Drug
Policy www.csdp.org Washington, DC