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ANGOLA — The legalization of marijuana in Indiana presents opportunity and challenges, it was concluded by Trine University senior business students who released results of their recent semester-long study.
It was the culmination of a capstone project done in the Ketner School of Business by five students, who stressed that their research was to provide accurate data regardless of personal opinions and political persuasions.
The study was requested by Judy Rowe of Fremont, who presented the idea to students during the height of the campaign for the 51st seat in the Indiana Legislature. Rowe, a Democrat, was defeated by Republican Tony Isa of Angola.
“Having no hard data to back up my suspicion that legalizing cannabis was the logical action for Hoosiers, I turned to Trine University with a proposal for a Capstone Study to find the facts,” Rowe said in a prepared statement issued upon the conclusion of the study. “Despite the unusual topic, the Ketner School of Business authorized the project. I’m grateful to them and the five Trine seniors who diligently researched public records to compile the presentation of black and white data.”
Marijuana legalization was one of the calling cards of Rowe’s campaign, not because she wants to be able to legally use the substance — she doesn’t — but so Indiana can realize the tax benefits enjoyed by neighboring states where it is legal. She has proposed legalization as a means of lowering property taxes in the Hoosier state.
“Our proposal was to discuss the potential outcomes of implementation of marijuana (legalization) in the state of Indiana. We primarily only compared to the state of Michigan,” said student Michael Kruse of Auburn. “And we also provided Miss Rowe with a non-partisan and unbiased research regarding marijuana legalization.
“So why did we just choose Michigan primarily for this? Michigan of the surrounding states has been the longest compared to anybody else, Illinois, slightly minor than Ohio (with legal marijuana).”
There were a number of other factors the students looked at in their work.
“Michigan compares with the state of Indiana similarly with agriculture, the population density, the cost of living, and also the overall economic development of both states. Our deliverables that we chose was legalization, job implications, then the banking industry, the financial industry and then zoning laws within both states,” Kruse said.
The students looked at all of the neighboring states that have legalized marijuana, which includes all of the states except Kentucky, which will have medicinal marijuana in 2025.
The main focus was on Michigan due to its proximity and available data, particularly tax data.
Based on the data compiled, the students concluded, “Overall, the legalization of marijuana within Indiana offers both opportunity and an ongoing debate on how potential benefits and challenges would affect the state if this policy were to change. Even though Indiana is one of the only states that has yet to legalize the drug, being able to compare the data and finances of neighboring states … are able to show the impacts of legalization can create major shifts in our society.”
One of the greatest impacts of legal marijuana in Michigan, the study showed, was the tax revenue garnered by the state.
Michigan revenue
Since December 2019, when it was legalized, Michigan has earned almost $1.1 billion in taxes. Of the money received, about 35% went to kindergarten-12th grade education and an equal amount to transportation. The remainder went to local government.
The tax collected by Michigan on marijuana and related product sales is a flat 10%, the study said.
When it came to employment, the study said there were 31,000 full-time positions created by 2022 to support the industry. The study did not look at wages paid to workers.
When it came to ethical implications, the report pointed out that much data is not available because federal law still criminalizes marijuana. Therefore, banks cannot provide services to state-sanctioned marijuana businesses.
Federal banking regulations also make it difficult for marijuana businesses to get loans or mortgages.
This also makes it difficult for the businesses to get legal representation.
The students also tried, unsuccessfully, to try to determine how much money was being spent by Indiana residents on marijuana and marijuana products in Michigan.
Due to banking regulations and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, information about individual customers cannot be released legally.
“Being able to track how many citizens are leaving a marijuana illegal state to a legalized state to purchase cannabis could provide additional insight on tax revenue that is being missed in the state of Indiana,” the study said.
The students were not able to access data showing whether marijuana-related crime in Indiana has increased due to legal marijuana being available through border states.
“Locating specific data on marijuana related crimes proved challenging as marijuana arrests are not directly separated from other drug related arrests by the Indiana Department of Justice,” the study said.
Steuben crime statistics
Locally, crime statistics are available. Since 2019, the Steuben County Sheriff’s Office reports marijuana-related arrests have nearly tripled through Dec. 16.
“Marijuana arrests have almost tripled since 2019 and I would say it has a lot to do with marijuana being legal in Michigan and Ohio,” said Mike Meeks, chief deputy of the Steuben County Sheriff’s Office.
In 2019, there were 106 marijuana-related arrests in Steuben County. That figure sits at 284 with two weeks remaining in the year.
The move to legalize marijuana in Indiana appears to be gaining traction, based on recent published reports.
A new Republican-allied group is pushing for decriminalization, but many Republicans in the statehouse have remained against the measure. Rep. Tony Isa, the Angola Republican who was just sworn in as the state representative for District 51, which Rowe was running for as a Democrat, has repeatedly stated his opposition to legalization.
It became a calling card, literally and figuratively, for Rowe’s campaign.
“While the Trine seniors worked, I talked. And listened, and talked some more to voters where I found them. I wanted to hear what the thoughts of the constituents of District 51,” Rowe said.
“At first, it took all my courage to be bold about the topic of legalizing a criminal substance. I expected angry opposition, especially among older demographics. But the responses blew me away.
“Contrary my expectations, people were overwhelmingly supportive of legalization. They cited numerous different reasons — the loss of revenue, the resources wasted on (law) enforcement, the futility of criminalization, the damage of incarceration, the worry of arrest, the medicinal need and more. The voices in support of legalization were bipartisan and ageless, echoing each other with the the question, ‘Why not here?’ Again, with no hard data, I can only suspect the answer.”
Hoosiers support legalization
Results from the recently released Hoosier Survey conducted by the Bowen Center for Public Affairs at Ball State University, a large majority of Hoosiers favored legalization, reflecting a national trend, researchers said.
“Support for marijuana legalization remains robust, with 62% favoring recreational and medicinal legalization and an additional 25% supporting medicinal-only legalization,” the survey’s summary released Dec. 5 said.
“Support varies by education level, with 70% of those without college education favoring full legalization, compared to 51% of respondents with a four-year degree or higher.”
Polling results released by the Republican-allied group Safe and Regulated Indiana, showed 70% of Hoosiers favored legalizing marijuana and 27% opposed.
“This survey confirms what we already know. Hoosiers are overwhelmingly united behind safe and regulated marijuana policy,” said Joe Elsener, spokesperson for Safe and Regulated Indiana, in a release. “Indiana voters strongly support legalization for adults 21+ and taxing and regulating marijuana just like alcohol. They want responsible legalization because they know it means safer streets, shutting down drug dealers, and keeping tax revenue here in our state.”
”}]] ANGOLA — The legalization of marijuana in Indiana presents opportunity and challenges, it was concluded by Trine University senior business students who released results of their semester-long study on Monday. Read More
