King Co. Exec Dow Constantine proposes investments in community organizations, legal system changes
King County Executive Dow Constantine announced new investments in community-based organizations and adjustments in the criminal legal system in his 2021-2022 Proposed Budget on Wednesday following what he says has been an "awakening" to the realities faced by Black communities after the death of George Floyd.
Among Constantine's proposed investments included reallocating $4.6 million in marijuana tax revenue to community-based programs. That money would be shifted directly from law enforcement to the community, one of the demands made by many protesting for racial justice.
Of that investment, $2.8 million would be used to help residents vacate past marijuana convictions and $1.35 million would be funded to youth marijuana prevention programs in unincorporated King County. The remaining $450,000 would be used to create a community advisory board that would guide how the county spend's future marijuana revenue.
"Since the legalization of marijuana, King County has received a portion of the retail excise tax and directed that money toward law enforcement," Constantine said. "It is a fact that Black communities have historically and currently been disproportionately harmed by our nation's war on drugs.
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