Pubdate: Thu, 10 Nov 2016
Source: Daily Courier, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2016 The Okanagan Valley Group of Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/531
Authors: Stephanie Smith & Damian Kettlewell
Page: A9

PUBLIC, PRIVATE LIQUOR STORES ARE BEST OPTIONS FOR MARIJUANA SALES

The best system for non-medical marijuana sales already
exists

Non-medical marijuana will be legally for sale soon and, here in
British Columbia, we already have the ideal system in place to ensure
that it's sold in the most socially responsible manner.

When Justin Trudeau's Liberals took office in October 2015, they did
so with a host of mandates from Canadians. Stephen Harper thought that
the Liberals' position on legal marijuana would sink them, but in the
end it was hardly an issue at all.

Now it's up to Trudeau's government to work out the details on
removing marijuana from the Criminal Code, but the provinces have the
responsibility of determining how it will be regulated, sold and
distributed.

The B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union (BCGEU) and the B.C.
Private Liquor Store Association (BCPLSA) formed the Responsible
Marijuana Retail Alliance of B.C. in December 2015. We are working
together to see legal, non-medical marijuana warehoused and
distributed through the existing Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB)
system, and sold in B.C. alongside alcohol in liquor stores.

It's not every day that substances are removed from the Criminal Code.
Here in B.C., we have a system that is perfectly suited to handle the
change. Our public and private liquor stores are already regulated
and, in the large majority of cases, they have above 90 per cent
compliance rates for age verification. Youth in B.C. have a much more
difficult time accessing alcohol than tobacco.

On the distribution side, the LDB operates a secure network that
already transports hundreds of millions of dollars of a controlled
substance every year. Creating a separate, parallel system to
accomplish something that our province already does so well would be
unnecessarily costly and time-consuming. Money would be diverted from
important public services, like education and health care, into an
additional bureaucracy.

Our two organizations have not taken a stand on the legalization or
consumption of non-medical marijuana. Legalization is inevitable.
Being pragmatic, we believe marijuana should be sold in the most
socially responsible way possible.

Looking south of the border to Colorado and Washington, once their
systems were up and running, tax revenues from marijuana sales have
exceeded forecasts in both states. This year, marijuana sales in
Colorado are on pace to contribute $125 million to the state coffers.

However, that is just tax revenue from private sales. Profits from our
public stores and distribution network contribute over $900 million
annually to education, health care and other public services. These
funds help keep other taxes down.

We have a real opportunity ahead of us. The BCGEU and BCPLSA, through
our alliance, are ready to work with our partners at all levels of
government to ensure that marijuana legalization benefits our province
while reducing risk. If done properly, with the appropriate regulatory
oversight and safeguards in place, legalized marijuana can create jobs
and generate public revenue to fund public services.

===============

Stephanie Smith is president of the BC Government and Service Employees' 
Union. Damian Kettlewell is marijuana spokesperson for the BC Private 
Liquor Store Association.
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MAP posted-by: Matt