STUDY CLAIMS DRUG LEGALIZATION COULD SAVE MONEY

Legalizing drugs in the U.S. could save the federal government $88 billion,
according to Harvard economics lecturer Jeffrey A. Miron.

The findings, published by the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank,
show that legalizing drugs would save the federal government an estimated
$41.3 billion in drug prohibition enforcement expenses.

Legalizing drugs-including marijuana, heroin, cocaine, and synthetic
drugs-would also generate tax revenues of about $46.7 billion, Miron argued
in the paper, which he co-wrote with Katherine Waldock, a doctoral
candidate at the NYU Stern School of Business.

Miron, also a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, said he did not think
the proposal to legalize drugs would lead to higher demand, because current
drug laws are mild and ineffective in deterring drug use.

"In most cases if you are charged with simple possession, you don't get
arrested, you pay a fine of $100 dollars," Miron said.

The paper proposes that tax revenue would come from regular income, sales,
and a sin tax. The proposed sin tax would discourage irresponsible drug use
but punish responsible use, Miron said.

He compared the sin tax on drugs to a tax on Ben & Jerry's ice cream.

"Some people misuse Ben & Jerry's," Miron said. "They eat too much, get
fat, and use publicly funded health care."

Miron argued that a black market for drugs would not emerge if drugs were
taxed at a rate comparable to alcohol or tobacco.

While Miron said he does not expect his report to change existing drug
laws, he said he hoped his findings would plant the idea of legalizing drugs.

"People who already believe drugs are evil won't be swayed," he said. "The
numbers might change the minds of a few people who are on the fence."