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According to CNN, a marijuana user is arrested every 38 seconds in the United States. Lawmakers are now attempting to reverse this trend by proposing a bill that would end federal penalties for possessing fewer than 100 grams of the drug.

The law would also exemplify the adage “sharing is caring” by allowing the “nonprofit transfer” of up to an ounce of the drug without penalty.

This board is in favor of legalizing marijuana.

Claims by the Drug Enforcement Administration and other government organizations regarding the harmfulness of the substance and its status as a gateway drug are largely false or unprovable – but that does not mean the drug should go completely unregulated.

The law would treat marijuana much like alcohol, in that possession of the substance and its responsible use would go unpunished. Driving under the influence or selling the drug for profit would likely still be punished.

But the bill is unclear on and does not address many of the finer policy points surrounding the debate to legalize drugs.

For example, the bill does not address growing, selling for profit or trafficking marijuana – leaving many questions about its real legal status unanswered.

The bill would very likely reduce the number of people arrested and jailed for possession and use, easing the burden on our prison systems, but states would still be free to pass and enforce laws forbidding the drug.