Residents in California voted to legalize recreational marijuana use Tuesday, opening up the market to nearly 40 million citizens.
Proposition 64, which was expected to pass, will allow anyone over 21 to possess one ounce of marijuana and grow up to six plants in their home. A 15 percent tax on all marijuana sales could earn the state more than $1 billion in annual revenue.
“This is the most important moment in the history of the marijuana legalization movement,” Tom Angell, chairman of the Marijuana Majority, told The Daily Caller News Foundation. “California is the sixth-largest economy in the world and is hugely culturally influential. Most importantly, this vote will dramatically accelerate the end of federal marijuana prohibition.”
California is the fifth state to legalize marijuana for recreational use, alongside Washington, Colorado, Alaska and Oregon. The District of Columbia also legalized marijuana for recreational use, but the law remains in limbo due to legal hurtles. Record national support is giving marijuana activists hope for victories in the future.
Many states follow the example of California on legislation like this, which means a push for national legalization could come next.
“With California’s huge vote and other results tonight, our movement is in perfect position to increase our already strong momentum,” Angell told TheDCNF. “Both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have repeatedly pledged to respect state marijuana laws.”
Legalization nationwide would rake in $28 billion in annual federal and state revenue, according to a study by the Tax Foundation.
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