Desert Hot Springs, an almost nowhere town outside of Los Angeles, California, has overnight become a hubspot for marijuana.
When California decided to fully legalize recreational cannabis in 2016, the small desert town was a large focal point for investors and locals looking to cash in on on a potential gold rush.
Marijuana Boosts Industries
According to an article from the LA Times:
“I can only imagine what we can do with the tax revenue,” Mayor Scott Matas said. “We’re in need of parks, our roads are dilapidated. All around — our sidewalks, curbs, gutters.”
So cannabis has been able to turn Desert Hot Springs from a dusty small town in the southern desert of California with an average median income of $33k into a booming industry that some are paying up to $5-million dollars to lease property. How can this help New Hampshire? Easy.
The estimated generated tax revenue that New Hampshire has planned for a legalized cannabis industry would equal approximately $60-million dollars. That revenue just in taxes alone.
For those who aren’t Government savvy – we have you covered. If cannabis were to reach legalization in New Hampshire, then businesses would be able to thrive. With the three main industries in New Hampshire being Medical, General Labor, and a small (slowly) growing tech industry, another addition would be perfect. Especially for the 21-30-year-old demographics who typically leave the state in order to pursue opportunities that New Hampshire severely lacks in. Those same 21-30 year old’s are also the primary target for cannabis arrests/fines in the state. Legalization would take the penalties away and put a job in their hands.
Legalization Will Help Many Local Businesses
For cities like Manchester where opioid addiction ranks in the top 5 highest in the country, people will have an alternative. 52.5 out of every 100 prescriptions were written for New Hampshire citizens in 2017. In 2019, we had 471 drug overdoeses – down from 488 in 2018. These numbers aren’t moving very well for a state that has repeatedly used these metrics for keeping marijuana illegal.
With the New Hampshire cannabis users and citizens still being under the thumb of our police cheif and Governor Sununu, 75% believe that legalization would add to the betterment of the state. Citizens will no longer feel the pressure from the New Hampshire government, industry will develop and we can move on to bigger problems.