Recreational marijuana in Colorado has little impact in Utah

(KUTV) Colorado legalized marijuana for recreational use earlier this year and Rod Decker went to Denver to look at the new law.

Other states, notably Washington have legalized marijuana as well. With surrounding states changing their laws and making it more available, is this new market causing problems in Utah?

Surprisingly it is making very little difference and law enforcement says it isn’t seeing much marijuana coming from Colorado.  A possible reason for this, according to people knowledgeable about marijuana, is that you can get the drug cheaper illegally in Utah than you can get it legally in Colorado.

“You gotta savor it a little, you know,” says Greg from Denver. He smokes marijuana because for him, “it’s very relaxing.”

Greg has smoked for years, but now he can do it without fear of prosecution.  Colorado voters overruled the governor and legislature by making recreational marijuana legal. Now dozens of stores all over Denver and Colorado sell varieties of marijuana called Lemon Grass, Mob Boss or Hong Kong Diesel.

The new laws have helped revolutionize the industry, they now have marijuana paste called ear wax that melts instead of burning. There are many more edible options besides the predictable cookie.
 
Estimates say that most of the customers in Colorado marijuana stores come from out of state, about 70 or 80 percent.

“I came here just for the marijuana because I smoke purely relationally thank you,” said Swan from Kansas.
       
John Morgan, who owns a marijuana dispensary and grows within a warehouse with an artificial climate, says the industry “has grown three times over since February when we went recreational.”
   
Though business is booming Morgan has to scramble to finance business growth, which is a major issue because the banks won’t lend to the marijuana business. 

The reason is that right now marijuana is still federally illegal, but the feds won’t enforce their law where state law permits marijuana.

Reporters Colin Wolf and Colby Frazier drove to Colorado to write a story for the City Weekly, a Salt Lake City based newspaper, and they were surprised by how expensive the marijuana was.  They say the price is about double what you’d pay to a drug dealer. 

Sgt. Todd Boyce says Utah law enforcement hasn’t seen much marijuana from Colorado.  Drugs still come from mostly from Mexico and California.

At Salt Lake Community College most of the kids we talked to used marijuana, used to use marijuana or know people who use. Despite a diligent effort we couldn’t find anybody who’s been to Colorado themselves. They say people can get marijuana here.

(Copyright 2014 Sinclair Broadcasting Group.)

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Recreational marijuana in Colorado has little impact in Utah