What is the State of Marijuana in Wyoming?
Marijuana is illegal in Wyoming for recreational and medical purposes. Persons caught possessing, distributing, selling, or consuming the drug face legal consequences. While opponents of marijuana legalization in the state continue to argue it would lead to increased addiction and drugged driving crime rates, there remains a growing movement to legalize the drug. In 2018, about 49% of respondents in a survey conducted by the Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center at the University of Wyoming supported marijuana legalization. By 2020, the figure had risen to 54%, while 85% of respondents in the survey also favored the legalization of medical cannabis.
How Has Marijuana Affected the Wyoming Economy?
Marijuana has not been legalized in Wyoming and therefore has had no real impact on the state's economy. However, legalization of the drug would likely create more jobs, tax revenue to the state's coffers, and potentially reduce marijuana-related crimes and the budget spent on criminal offenses by the state. Per a report by Representative Jared Olsen when introducing House Bill 209, which proposed a 30% tax on marijuana sales, Wyoming could generate up to $47 million a year in taxes if recreational cannabis is legalized.
What is the Marijuana Crime Rate in Wyoming?
According to data obtained from the FBI's Crime Data Explorer for the years 2018 to 2021, Wyoming has witnessed a decline in arrests related to marijuana possession and sales. The FBI's interactive portal, which utilizes the Uniform Crime Reporting Program, provides insights into crime statistics. In 2018, the state recorded 2,613 arrests for marijuana possession and 264 arrests for marijuana sales. The subsequent year saw a decrease, with figures dropping to 2,393 arrests for possession and 243 for sales. The downward trend continued in 2020, as Wyoming reported 1,750 arrests for possession and 150 for sales. Notably, the decline persisted in 2021, with significant reductions in arrest numbers. During that year, Wyoming recorded 1,133 arrests for marijuana possession and 67 arrests for marijuana sales.
What is the History of Wyoming Marijuana?
There are controversies surrounding the year when Wyoming enacted its first cannabis prohibition law. However, there is a consensus that it happened in the early 20th century. Since 2015, several initiatives have been proposed to reform cannabis laws in Wyoming, with some gathering signatures to place the legalization of cannabis on the election ballot. Owing to Wyoming's strict ballot initiative requirements, these initiatives have failed to reach the election ballot.
In 2021, House Bill 209, sponsored by Representative Olsen, was introduced to the House, aiming to legalize and regulate the possession, use, cultivation, and retail sale of cannabis for adults aged 21 or older. The bill died in the same year, with Wyoming lawmakers failing to act on it. HB 143, sponsored by Representative Burt, aiming to legalize medical cannabis, was not considered for introduction at the House. HB 106, also sponsored in 2021 by Representative Baker, proposing to decriminalize possession of small amounts of adult-use cannabis, was also not considered for introduction at the House. Hence, cannabis continues to be prohibited in Wyoming.
Cultivation of marijuana in the United States, the early 17th century.