Coronavirus Could Hasten Legalization

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Cannabis legalization could be coming sooner than later, hastened by the spread of COVID-19 and economic fallout of the pandemic, some experts are predicting.

Speaking to Yahoo Finance Thursday, several experts said a need for state revenue could drive legalization in the wake of a pandemic, especially since some states, like New York, already have infrastructure in place thanks to their medical marijuana efforts.

Jessica Rabe of DataTrek Research told the outlet "there’s a simple and effective solution for states and cities to help cover their huge budget shortfalls after the COVID-19 pandemic subsides: legalize recreational sales of marijuana."

Digging deeper to the issue, Rabe told the outlet legalization could help with states' inevitable cash flow issues:

“We’ve been thinking a lot about how life will change post-virus, and one big difference will be that state and local governments are going to encounter large unexpected tax receipt shortages...That’s particularly true when it comes to sales and income taxes amid stressed consumer balance sheets and massive layoffs. And unlike the Federal government, states can’t print unlimited amounts of money.”

Jessica Rabe

Read the full piece on Yahoo Finance here.