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Have marijuana seizures at U.S. borders been declining as more states make the substance legal?

Thursday, August 27, 2020
By Allegra Taylor
YES

The U.S. Border Patrol seized 86% less marijuana from smugglers in 2019 than in 2014, when the substance was first made fully legal in some U.S. states.

Tracking seizures provides indicative data about otherwise hidden flows of illegal drugs. The decline in marijuana seizures began even before calls by then-candidate Trump to build a higher, stronger wall along the Mexican border. Stopping the flow of higher-value drugs such as fetanyl and cocaine remains a priority for law enforcement, and the Administration argues the wall will help. Data on customs seizures suggests most of those drugs, which are easier to conceal, are already smuggled directly through official border crossings. The Cato Institute, in an analysis of the impact of marijuana liberalization, observes that "hard drugs seized at ports of entry were seven times more valuable than those seized between ports of entry."

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