WANT LEGAL POT? PROP.19 ISN'T THE WAY

A deeply flawed measure would create many more problems than it could
hope to solve.

California ought to have a serious debate on whether to legalize
marijuana for personal use. If lawmakers won't confront the issue, it
might even be time for a ballot initiative to change the law.

Proposition 19 is not the right one.

The measure on the Nov. 2 ballot is full of worrisome loopholes and
ambiguities that would create a chaotic nightmare for law
enforcement, local governments and businesses.

It is so poorly drafted, in fact, that it almost makes you wonder:
What were they smoking? The measure would allow Californians 21 and
older to possess up to an ounce of marijuana and grow marijuana on up
to 25 square feet of private property. Supporters say it would
control and tax marijuana. It would do neither.

Indeed, many of the positives that proponents advertise aren't
actually written into the measure. For instance, they say that
legalization would generate a huge financial windfall for the state
and local governments by taxing $14 billion in annual illegal sales,
plus create thousands of jobs for California's struggling economy.

They cite the state Board of Equalization's estimate last year of
$1.4 billion in annual tax revenues, enough to take a huge bite out
of the budget deficit.

But nowhere in the measure is a specific tax proposal. That issue is
left entirely to the Legislature and local governments, so there are
no guarantees about any pot taxes and whether they would be fair.

Supporters also argue that, like the end of failed prohibition of
alcohol, the proposition would free the criminal justice system of
the burden of prosecuting marijuana crimes.

But California effectively decriminalized personal marijuana use and
possession 34 years ago. People caught with less an ounce of pot --
and not charged with other crimes -- typically are fined $100 or less
and rarely set foot in a courtroom, much less a jail.

This proposition would not magically end marijuana trafficking or put
drug cartels out of business. A study by the respected Rand Corp.
concluded that a sizable tax on pot -- a bill introduced this year
called for $50 per ounce -- could create a whole new black market for
cheaper drugs. Since it would still be illegal for those under 21 to
possess marijuana, the illicit trade to feed the teen market would continue.

Another significant defect in the measure is that it grants too much
leeway to local governments to allow the possession and cultivation
of larger amounts by individuals -- as well as to authorize
commercial marijuana farms, warehouses and retail stores.

A mishmash of rules would inevitably result, only multiplying the
mess created by medical marijuana dispensaries that have mushroomed
across California.

The laws governing marijuana should be uniform across the state, as
they are for alcohol.

The passage of Proposition 19 would also saddle businesses with even
more legal murkiness in trying to keep marijuana-impaired employees
out of the workplace, especially from behind the wheel of school
buses or other jobs that could affect public safety.

The active ingredient in marijuana can stay in the body for weeks, so
current widely available tests can't tell how recently a worker might
have inhaled.

The same uncertainty applies to enforcing driving-while-impaired
laws. The measure has no definition of what would constitute driving
under the influence of marijuana, unlike the 0.08 percent
blood-alcohol standard for drunken driving.

If this proposition passes, California would again be a national
pioneer -- the first state to legalize marijuana for recreational
use. But it would put state law in direct conflict with federal law.
The Obama administration, which has taken a hands-off attitude on
medicinal marijuana, says legalization is "a non-starter."

Gil Kerlikowske, the national drug czar, told California police
chiefs in March that "marijuana use is harmful," that legalization
would increase abuse and that its social costs would outweigh any
possible tax revenue.

It's obvious that society's attitudes toward marijuana are now much
like they are toward alcohol and tobacco. More than 400,000
Californians use marijuana daily, according to the state.

California voters will likely get another chance to have their say on
legalization as soon as 2012. It would be shortsighted to support
Proposition 19 -- a deeply flawed measure that would create many more
problems than it could hope to solve -- just because it's the first
one to make the ballot.

Editorials are the opinion of the Merced Sun-Star editorial board.
Members of the editorial board include Publisher Debra Kuykendall,
Executive Editor Mike Tharp, Editorial Page Editor Keith Jones, Copy
Desk Chief Jesse Chenault, Online Editor Brandon Bowers and visiting
editor Henry Du Pertuis.

(This editorial originated with our sister newspaper The Sacramento Bee.)