In a world of absurd drug policy, it looks as though a little more sanity may come to our streets. Last week, the New York state legislature moved toward abolishing the Rockefeller Drug Laws. Enacted in 1973 as a namesake of then-Governor Nelson Rockefeller, the laws instituted mandatory sentencing guidelines for drug-related offenses, whether violent or not, tying the hands of judges in even the most petty of cases. Taking a hard line on drugs, be it smoking a joint or dealing heroin, was politically expedient for Gov. Rockefeller. But in the approximately 30 years they have existed, the laws have put thousands of first-time offenders in jail, often for decades.
Investigate who is lobbying for stricter drug laws and you will find one of the chief proponents to be the privately-run prison complex. And their lobbying would not be unjustified. According to the Correctional Association of New York, a nonprofit monitoring group, the state spends half a billion dollars each year on the incarceration of drug offenders. To keep an inmate in New York state prison for a year costs taxpayers $44,000. The New York Times calculates that the rate of increase in corrections spending outpaces that of both transportation and education. Though the United States is home to a mere 5 percent of the world’s population, it holds nearly a quarter of the world’s prisoners. A full one-third of the prisoners in New York are there for drug-related convictions. The burden on society comes not from the drug addicts, but from the laws that keep them in prison.
Policy toward both soft and hard drugs should continue to be liberalized, but there are some distinctions to be made. Soft drugs, most notably marijuana (but also alcohol and tobacco), should become (or remain) decriminalized and regulated. These are substances that can be used on a recreational basis and — in most cases — do not pose a short-term threat to the life of the user. Decriminalization also allows for the application of a sin tax (as has been done with cigarettes) to both wean usage and raise significant amounts of money. Hard drugs, while remaining illegal, should be approached in a more realistic manner by state and federal law — users are turned around not by punishment, but by rehabilitation. It costs about $3,500 for outpatient drug treatment, or $19,000 for resident care (8 percent and 43 percent the cost of incarceration, respectively). The Netherlands, home to some of the world’s most liberal (and sane) drug policies, uses taxes on marijuana to fund rehabilitation programs for hard drug addicts.
Repealing the Rockefeller Drug Laws is an important step toward a smarter drug policy. But it will only bring New York on par with the other states. It is my hope that the legislature and governor use this opportunity to not only repeal, but reform New York state drug laws.