Indiana lawmakers won't consider marijuana legalization
If you had high hopes Indiana's budget crisis would cause lawmakers to take another look at marijuana legalization, don't hold your breath.
Catch up quick: Lawmakers learned last week they need to cut a staggering $2 billion from their two-year spending plan — or find a way to close the gap with additional revenue.
As it stands, lawmakers have just $170 million in new dollars to spend in 2026 and $30 million in 2027.
That's not much, considering the state spends around $22 billion annually and its Medicaid expenses are projected to grow by more than $400 million in the first year and another $375 million in the second.
Between the lines: Statehouse leaders have said "everything is on the table" when it comes to writing a balanced budget, and that includes cuts and, possibly, new taxes.
Yes, but: Not everything.
What they're saying:"We're not going to legalize marijuana in the budget," House Speaker Todd Huston (R-Fishers) told reporters Thursday.
Huston said legislators wouldn't consider fast-tracking significant public policy changes in the final week of the legislative session simply to close a budget gap.
Plus: The taxes generated from legalization wouldn't solve Indiana's financial problems.
A fiscal analysis from the state's Legislative Services Agency estimated that recreational marijuana would generate between $100 million and $200 million annually once a cannabis program was fully implemented (which would take some time).
What's more likely: Raising the cigarette tax by $1 would bring in an estimated $200 million annually and is a policy that's already been vetted by the legislative process multiple times.
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