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Since 1973, 14 state legislatures -- Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Ohio and Oregon -- have enacted versions of marijuana decriminalization. In 2011, Connecticut became the latest state to enact a decriminalization law which classifies first offense possession of 1/2 ounce of marijuana for adults over 21, as a non-criminal infraction, punishable by a $150 fine. In each of these states, marijuana users no longer face jail time (nor in most cases, arrest or criminal records) for the possession or use of small amounts of marijuana. According to national polls, voters overwhelmingly support these policies. In Oregon, voters recently reaffirmed their state's decriminalization law by a 2-1 margin in a statewide referendum.



Responsible Use



As with alcohol consumption, marijuana smoking can never be an excuse for misconduct or other improper behavior. For example, driving or operating heavy equipment while impaired from marijuana should be prohibited.

Most importantly, marijuana smoking is for adults only, and is inappropriate for children. There are many activities in our society that are permissible for adults, but forbidden for children, such as motorcycle riding, skydiving, signing contracts, getting married, drinking alcohol or smoking tobacco. However, we do not condone arresting adults who responsibly engage in these activities in order to dissuade our children from doing so. Nor can we justify arresting adult marijuana smokers on the grounds of sending a "message" to children. Our expectation and hope for young people is that they grow up to be responsible adults, and our obligation to them is to demonstrate what that means.


NORML supports the adoption of a legally controlled market for marijuana, where consumers can buy marijuana for personal use from a safe legal source. This policy, generally known as legalization, exists on various levels in a handful of European countries like The Netherlands and Switzerland, and was recently adopted by voter initiative in both Washington (I-502) and Colorado (A-64), the first states to do so in the US.

We expect additional voter initiatives to appear on the ballot in 2014 and 2016. NORML will be working with proponents to support these proposals, and we will continue to push Congress to amend federal law to permit states to experiment with different models of marijuana legalization without interference from the federal government.


Reprinted with Permission of National NORML