Public Policy - Research Paper Example

? Public policy of the of the Table of Contents Introduction 3 Scope of the public policy concern 4 Stakeholdersand affected constituencies 5 Political institutions relevant to the discussion of the issue and affected governments 6 Potential effects of legalizing marijuana 6 Cost to address the issue 8 Proposed policies to address the issue 8 Recommendation 9 References 11 Introduction According to the Federal Research Division (2003), Marijuana, a by-product of the Cannabis sativa L. plant, is a mind-altering substance. According to the Controlled Substances Act, it is considered a Schedule I substance and therefore its usage is illegal. Data have suggested that marijuana is by far the most widely trafficked drug all over the world. Its major benefit lies in the fact that, it induces relaxation and heightens the senses of its consumers. This feeling is induced by the primary chemical agent of this drug, which is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC) considers marijuana to be “a leading drug threat to the country.” However, U.S. law enforcement authorities generally regard marijuana as a lower threat than cocaine and diverted pharmaceuticals because it has least association with violent crime and property crime. Marijuana is the most readily available and widely used and abused illicit drug in the nation. Owing to its high prevalence, marijuana use has found acceptance among several adults and adolescents and a perception prevails that the drug is not harmful. Over the last few years, a tremendous growth has been witnessed in the usage, distribution and selling of marijuana in different regions of US. Usage of marijuana entails certain side effects. According to researchers, it causes problems in daily life and its usage can worsen a person's existing problems. In addition to that, declining mental and physical health, relationship problems, lower life satisfactions, less academic and career success have been reported, by heavy users of marijuana, as potential side effects. Furthermore it has also been reported that, students among marijuana users are more likely to drop out from school. In the field of work, frequently marijuana usage has been associated with side effects such as accidents, workers' compensation claims, increased absences, tardiness and low job turnover (Drug abuse, 2012a). However, despite the illicit usage and trafficking of marijuana and the potential risks of consumption, efforts are being made to legalize the drug (White house, 2010). This has been a major public policy issue in the recent past and is a source of continuous debates taking place in the assembly. This research paper will involve a thorough analysis of the scope of this public policy concern and how it affects the public as well as the government. The proposed policies for addressing this issue will also be discussed and suitable recommendations will be made accordingly. Scope of the public policy concern In the recent times, marijuana legalization has been the pivotal issue being discussed in the “We the People” petition site launched by White House. This website was launched with a view of providing the US citizens with a means to lobby for relevant issues. The marijuana petition has recorded more than 55,000 signatures, an astounding 20,000 more than any other issue on the website, which demonstrates the importance of the issue. Despite the relative importance of the issue, the government has refrained from responding to the marijuana petition. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) conducted in the year 2010, marijuana is the most heavily used illicit drug (17.4 million past-month users). In that particular year, 76.8 percent of current illicit drug users accounted for the usage of. Out of that, 60.1 percent users only smoked marijuana and no other drug (Ali, 2011). Adolescents and young adults are the most frequent users of marijuana. As far as 8th-graders are concerned, 12.5 percent reported the use of marijuana in 2011 and 7.2 percent were current users. When the 10th-graders were taken into consideration, 28.8 percent reported the use of marijuana whereas 17.6 percent were current users. 12th graders accounted for the highest usage of marijuana (32.8 percent) in the year prior to the survey whereas 20.6 percent were current users (Drug abuse, 2012b). The extensive use of marijuana has influenced many people to sign for the petition which adhered to legalizing marijuana consumption. However, the US government believes that, a certain degree of restriction is needed to be imposed on the use of the drug. Stakeholders and affected constituencies The stakeholders who will be mostly affected by the legalization of marijuana are recreational users or youth, government or substance abuse councils, drug companies, farmers, lawyers and medical users. The affected constituencies are the states where marijuana is exported and developed in abundance. According to the data provided by Federal Research Division (2003), the constituencies are California, Hawaii, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, Texas and Washington. Fig 1: Marijuana use in the past twelve months (Source: Drug Abuse, 2012b) Fig 2: Marijuana use in 2012 (Drug Abuse, 2012c) Political institutions relevant to the discussion of the issue and affected governments The issue being faced by both the federal government and state government, political institutions belonging from both the government are playing a key role in addressing the issue. The institutions primarily responsible are National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws and the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Potential effects of legalizing marijuana According to White House (2010), the Obama Administration has consistently demonstrated its firm opposition against any form of drug legalization. According to them are potential impacts are: Legalization would lower price, thereby increasing use RAND Corporation’s recent report, “Altered State,” suggested that the legalization of marijuana consumption would cause the price of marijuana to plummet drastically. This would lead to a significant increase in use of the drug. According to White House (2010), maintain the strict laws against the use of marijuana will keep prices higher. Product usage in general is sensitive to price, especially among young people. Thus, higher prices of marijuana will help keep the rate of consumption relatively low. An example that suggests the validity of the comment made above is the extensive consumption of legal products such as alcohol and tobacco which out outpaces the use of marijuana. Tax revenue would be offset by higher social costs The use of legal substances such as alcohol and tobacco is associated with high social costs. The social costs related to health care, criminal justice and lost productivity in workplaces are much higher in comparison with the revenues generated by taxing these products. Similar situation is expected, if marijuana consumption is legalized. Legalization would further burden the criminal justice system Marijuana legalization would increase the consumption of the drug thereby increasing the harm it causes. Marijuana possession although considered illegal, people possessing marijuana does not often go to prison. Probability of these people committing a crime under the influence of marijuana is much higher thereby burdening the criminal justice system. Legalization would do little, if anything, to curb drug violence Since marijuana accounts for a very nominal portion of the revenues generated by criminal organizations involved in drug distribution and human trafficking, legalizing marijuana would not deviate these groups from continuing their operation. One of the proposed policies in favor of legalizing marijuana consumption is imposition of high taxes on the drug. However, that would not fetch any benefits because violent drug cartels would resort to an alternative option of undercutting legal prices to keep their market share. Thereafter, the rise in demand for marijuana will render these groups even stronger. Cost to address the issue The above points suggests that the cost of this policy, although unknown, would be significantly high and if this policy is implemented in the near future, strict regulations are needed to be enforced in order to cut down on those costs. The reason for the cost is unknown because of the fact that marijuana hasn’t been legalized yet and the extent to which it is exported, developed and consumed hasn’t been accurately evaluated. But as highlighted earlier the cost of legalizing marijuana would be tremendously high as its consumption will severely bring down the tax revenues generated by the government. Proposed policies to address the issue A wine model application in case of marijuana legalization According to this model, parents would be able to able set a regulation to their teenage children over the usage of marijuana as they do in case of wine. Moreover, this model will also ensure that there is no monopoly in the production, sales and distribution of marijuana. This model implies that people will have the authority to grow and harvest their own marijuana in the same way they make their own wine. The advantage of implementing this model as highlighted by Huffington post (2013) is the fact that, the government can keep a strong control over the marketing and production of the drug. In another way, it can obstruct the development of an economically powerful marijuana production industry that cannot be moved. A binding quota for pot users Another policy that can be passed in accordance with the legalization of marijuana is to put a quota for pot users. A regulation can be set for pot users in terms of the amount of marijuana that they can buy in a month. This regulation would also keep a check in the amount of marijuana being produced and consumed. Setting a high tax on the usage of marijuana High taxation, although not as viable as the first two options, would still restrict the production, distribution and consumption of marijuana to a certain extent. Recommendation Public policies, according to Bowman, et al (2012) are defined as the policies that are formulated at any level of government. According to O’Toole (2000, pp.263-288), “the implementation of public policies is still alive and lively.” Their implementation is of paramount importance as far as the welfare of a country and its people are concerned. The reactions of public officials, businessmen as well as the citizens to these policies are equally important as they are the ones who have to accept the change (Tummers, Steijn & Bekkers, 2012, pp.716-736; Freidson, 2001). Policies have to be laid down keeping in mind the consequences that they might have in the long run. As far as legalizing marijuana is concerned, it is obvious that its consumption would not fetch any drastic benefits to the government. Rather, it would pose some serious consequences to the country in terms of health as well as economy as suggested in the above sections. Thus, either the government will have to maintain the illegal state of the consumption of marijuana or severe regulations have to be imposed in case it is legalized. In case it is legalized, the best policy that can be adopted to keep the market regulated is by applying a wine model as it would help the government to keep a strong control over the production and distribution of the drug as well as to prevent the development of this industry to the extent that cannot be brought down. References Bowman, S., Unwin, N., Critchley, J., Capewell, S., Husseini, A., Maziak, W....... Ahmad, B. (2012). Use of evidence to support healthy public policy: a policy effectiveness-feasibility loop. Bull World Health Organ, 90, 847-853. Drug Abuse. (2012a). DrugFacts: Marijuana. Retrieved from http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/marijuana Drug Abuse. (2012b). Marijuana Abuse: Marijuana. Retrieved from http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/marijuana-abuse/what-scope-marijuana-use-in-united-states Drug Abuse. (2012c). Marijuana. Retrieved from http://www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/marijuana Federal Research Division. (2003). Marijuana availability in the United States and its associated territories. Retrieved from http://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/pdf-files/MarAvail.pdf Freidson, E. (2001). Professionalism: The Third Logic. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Huffington Post. (2013). Legal Marijuana: How Could It Work? Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/09/04/legal-marijuana-canada_n_3864568.html O’Toole, L. J. (2000). Research on Policy Implementation: Assessment and Prospects. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 10(2), 263-288. Tummers, L., Steijn, B. & Bekkers, V. (2012). Explaining the willingness of public professionals to implement public policies: content, context, and personality characteristics. Public Administration, 90(3), 716-736. White House. (2010). Marijuana legalization. Retrieved from http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/ondcp/Fact_Sheets/marijuana_legalization_fact_sheet_3-3-11.pdf Read More