Worcester Chamber Opposes Legalizing Marijuana Ballot Question

Wednesday, October 19, 2016

GoLocalWorcester News Team

Worcester Chamber President and CEO, Timothy P. Murray

The Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce is opposed to the ballot question regarding the legalization of marijuana.

The Worcester Chamber announced their position on the question on Tuesday and had the following to say:

From a business standpoint, the passage of this question poses risks and complications that we may not fully understand at this time. The Chamber has serious concerns regarding the impact this will have on public safety, public health, the workplace, and the edibles market that accompanies legalization of marijuana. Member businesses have expressed apprehensions regarding managing workplace addictions and the consumption of marijuana or marijuana-based edibles by employees in the workplace. We also have concerns that there is no test, like that of a breathalyzer for alcohol, that will provide information on an individual’s level of impairment in the moment.

We have further concerns, similar to those expressed over the paid sick leave ballot question from 2014, regarding enforcement, regulation and oversight. The details of how this law will be implemented will be set forth in regulations, which are not yet drafted, shared for public comment, revised or promulgated. This process will not begin until after the ballot question has been decided by voters on November 8.

Additionally, the language of the question puts portions of the new law into effect December 15, 2016. We recognize that this does not leave much time to promulgate thoughtful, concise regulations. The promulgation of regulations is a lengthy process and the timeline given provides serious cause for concern that the regulations will be rushed. We have seen how difficult this process has also been for the medical marijuana industry, which is smaller in scale than full blown legalization, and this compounds our concerns.

Related Slideshow: The Highest Marijuana Prices in 2015 in New England by State

Forbes.com recently released a graphic that looks at how much an ounce of marijuana costs in every state in America, as well as the District of Columbia. The national average is $324.

Below is a look at where New England states fall in the rankings, as well as where marijuana is the most expensive and least expensive nationally.