Iowa governor candidate Rob Sand ties cannabis legalization to school funding in debate

Iowa's Democratic nominee for governor, State Auditor Rob Sand, said during a televised debate on Wednesday, Oct. 14, that legalizing cannabis and treating it like alcohol could help pay for his education plans, according to Iowa Capital Dispatch and Marijuana Moment.

The debate, hosted by KTIV-TV4 in Sioux City, was the second meeting between Sand and Republican nominee Zach Lahn, a businessman, in the race to succeed Gov. Kim Reynolds, who is not seeking reelection, Iowa Capital Dispatch reported. Sand repeated his pledge of a 5% increase in State Supplemental Aid for K-12 schools in his first year in office and said the state also needs to address its budget deficit, pointing to ending tax deals for data centers and legalizing cannabis. "If we legalize cannabis, treat it like alcohol — the first year will probably see $50 million, but in years after that, we'll be over $100 million," Sand said, as quoted by Iowa Capital Dispatch.

Marijuana Moment reported that Sand also said taxing and treating cannabis the way the state treats alcohol would be "a positive move for the state's budget" and for law enforcement, adding that police officers he talks to would rather deal with someone using cannabis than someone who was drunk. According to Marijuana Moment, Lahn did not address marijuana during the debate, and he reportedly opposes legalization. The outlet also reported that Sand has said Iowans who want cannabis are spending their money in Illinois or Missouri.

Sand and Lahn are scheduled to debate a third and final time on "Iowa Press" on Wednesday, Oct. 21, according to Iowa Capital Dispatch.