How much does marijuana prohibition cost?
By adding law enforcement costs and depriving governments of the revenue that could be gained by taxing marijuana sales, prohibition costs U.S. taxpayers $41.8 billion per year, according to a 2007 estimate by public policy researcher Jon B. Gettman, Ph.D. The report, “Lost Taxes and Other Costs of Marijuana Laws,” is based primarily on government estimates of the U.S. marijuana supply, prices, and arrests. A more conservative 2005 estimate by Harvard University economist Dr. Jeffrey Miron is still staggering at $10-$14 billion per year. See www.prohibitioncosts.org for more information.
Marijuana prohibition costs American taxpayers an estimated $12 billion annually. In 2002, the federal government spent $18.8 billion on the “drug war.” Approximately 53% was spent on enforcement, court, and prison expenses, with the rest used for treatment and education. In 1991 — the most recent year for which data is available — state and local governments spend a total of nearly $16 billion, of which about 80% was used for enforcement, court, and prison costs. State and local spending is estimated to have increased to $20 billion annually in 2002. Hence, the total annual criminal justice system expenditure for federal, state, and local governments is $25.964 billion ($9.964 billion + $16 billion [$20 billion x 80%]). While this total is not broken down by specific drugs, the FBI says that marijuana crimes account for 45.6% of all drug arrests. Assuming that expense and arrest percentages roughly match, the war on marijuana consumers costs taxpayers $11.84 billion annually.
