New Mexico could become the next state to consider legalizing marijuana.
New Mexico State Senator Ortiz y Pino has proposed an amendment to the state constitution that would legalize marijuana for adults 21 and over. The measure is backed by the Drug Policy Alliance, which publicized the introduction of the bill on its website.
According to Pino, the proposal is modeled after Colorado’s Amendment 64, which voters approved in 2012. The bill would raise a 25% excise tax on marijuana, earmarked to fund education.
If the bill passes in both New Mexico’s House and Senate, it will be placed on the ballot for 2014 for voters to decide.
The bill faces an uphill battle in New Mexico. A proposal last year to decriminalize marijuana possession passed in the House but it was never taken up by the Senate before it adjourned.
New Mexico legalized medical marijuana in 2007, and in 2013 medical marijuana brought in $750,000 in tax revenue.
