Practical Innovation in Government

14

How Denver Became the Global Benchmark for Legalizing Marijuana

In November 2012, Colorado voters passed Amendment 64 to the state constitution. The amendment gave local governments in the state the right to either prohibit or regulate and license the cultivation, processing, testing, distribution, and consumption of recreational marijuana. Given that more than 60 percent of the citizens of Denver voted in favor of the amendment, Mayor Michael Hancock and the city council decided to proceed with the legalization and regulation of marijuana within city limits.

The amendment had set a tight deadline for the legalization process. The city had only eight months to create and pass the relevant laws and regulations, and another three months before ...