Marijuana plants - Photo by WFAE
MADISON, WI (WSAU) – According to a recent Marquette University Law School poll from 2022, for the first time, a majority of Republicans supported legalizing marijuana sales in Wisconsin.
However, there is generally a large discrepancy between what polls show and what bills end up getting passed. So, where does the legalization of marijuana stand in Wisconsin in 2023?
The legislative year is still in its early stages, and no bills on the subject are currently being debated in Madison. Both Democrats and Republicans presented plans to legalize medical marijuana last year, and many Democrats now want to legalize recreational use as well.
Those in favor of medical marijuana legalization in Wisconsin made their case last April during a public hearing on a Republican measure that got its first hearing under the GOP-controlled Legislature, the latest hint of movement toward relaxing the state’s marijuana regulations.
Supporters of full legalization denounced the session as a publicity stunt. Republican supporters, on the other hand, said they were hoping to start a conversation and introduce another bill this year based on input they received from voters in their districts.
Rep. Pat Snyder, the bills chief sponsor, emphasized that 37 other states, both Republican and Democratic, have already authorized medical marijuana.
“I don’t know why we’re so behind the times,” he said afterward.
Snyder did fight back against those who advocate for full legalization, claiming that such legislation would never pass in a Republican-controlled legislature.
The last time a medicinal marijuana bill received a public hearing was in 2009, when Democrats controlled the Assembly.
Recreational marijuana use is legal in neighboring states like Michigan and Illinois. According to a recent paper published by the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, Wisconsin residents paid more than $36 million in taxes on cannabis items in Illinois alone in 2022.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least one-fifth of all Americans have tried marijuana at least once.
Last November, researchers from Canada’s Ottawa Hospital General examined 150 lung scans from marijuana smokers, tobacco smokers, and nonsmokers. Marijuana smokers had higher rates of emphysema, airway inflammation, and enlarged breast tissue than tobacco smokers, according to the study.
The scans revealed that 75% of marijuana users developed emphysema. Emphysema affected somewhat less than 70% of tobacco-only smokers, while it affected just 5% of nonsmokers.
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