[WASHINGTONTIMES] The bill received preliminary approval Friday from the state Senate, where Republicans hold an 18-17 edge. The stumbling block lies with House Democrats, who hold a 34-31 majority and have shown no enthusiasm for the measure.
Why? Last year, Democrats said they were worried about limiting access for welfare recipients, many of whom don't have bank accounts and may find it difficult to locate nearby ATMs in their neighborhoods. Democrats were also dubious about whether EBT cardholders were really blowing public dollars on pot.
Those arguments were raised once again at last week's Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee hearing, where the bill passed 3-2 on a party-line vote.
"My county still expresses concerns about this bill, and they don't know how big a problem it is as far as people using this money for the activities listed here, so I'm going to be a no," said Democratic state Sen. Matt Jones.
Liberals in Colorado and elsewhere have mocked concerns about welfare recipients getting high on the taxpayers' dime, exemplified by a headline in September from Media Matters, which said, "Right-Wing Media's Mythological 'Welfare for Weed' Campaign Has Resulted in Actual GOP Legislation."
But investigations by other media outlets have shown that the problem is more than a myth. On Thursday, Fox31 Denver reported that at least 17 lbs. of marijuana were likely purchased with public dollars in 2014, based on an examination of all ATM transactions using the EBT card in state marijuana dispensaries. |