Marijuana Policy Project expands consumer education campaign to Alaska with ads on Anchorage city buses reading, ‘With great marijuana laws comes great responsibility’ — bus ad images at http://www.ConsumeResponsibly.org/Ads

ANCHORAGE — Marijuana officially became legal for adults in Alaska on Tuesday. Ballot Measure 2, which was approved by 53% of state voters in November, allows adults 21 years of age and older to possess up to one ounce of marijuana, grow up to six marijuana plants in their homes, and possess the yield of those plants in the location where it was grown. It will remain illegal to use marijuana in public.

“Marijuana is a less harmful substance than alcohol,” said Mason Tvert, director of communications for the Marijuana Policy Project, which was the largest backer of the 2014 ballot measure in Alaska. “Adults should not be punished simply for making the safer choice, and in Alaska they no longer will be.”

The same day the law took effect, the Marijuana Policy Project launched an ad campaign in Anchorage encouraging adults who choose to use marijuana to “consume responsibly.” The ads, which appear on the sides of Anchorage city buses, read, “With great marijuana laws comes great responsibility.” 

The ads are part of the organization's “Consume Responsibly” public education campaign, which was launched in September and has featured highly publicized billboards in Colorado and Washington, as well as print ads, online ads, and materials in retail marijuana businesses. View the ads and more information about the campaign at http://www.ConsumeResponsibly.org/ads. 

“Most adults use marijuana for the same reasons most adults use alcohol,” Tvert said. “We want them to keep in mind that it carries the same responsibilities.”

Alaska is the third state in the nation where marijuana is officially legal for adults. Colorado and Washington enacted similar laws in 2012, and both states have established regulated marijuana markets for adults. The Alaska Legislature is in the process of establishing a regulated system of marijuana cultivation and sales. Voters in Oregon and the District of Columbia also adopted laws in November making marijuana legal for adults. 

“State laws allowing adults to use marijuana are becoming less and less of a novelty,” Tvert said. “It won’t be long before it’s the rule instead of the exception nationwide. Colorado and Washington are proving that regulating marijuana works, and soon Alaska will, too.”