Marijuana Users In Iowa Are Engaged And Active Citizens, Survey Shows—Smashing ‘Lazy Stoner’ Stereotypes

*“Many of today’s cannabis consumers are ‘middle American’ adults,
employed, own a home, vote regularly, pay their taxes and are involved in
their communities.”*

*By Bob Sillick, Iowa Capital Dispatch*

For many years, cannabis users were characterized as a cult of stoners:
young, often unemployed, party animals. That sector still exists in some
form, however, many of today’s cannabis consumers are “middle American”
adults, employed, own a home, vote regularly, pay their taxes and are
involved in their communities.

That is the general profile of adult cannabis consumers across the country
and in Des Moines, according to a recent survey by Consumer Research Around
Cannabis/The Media Audit.

The Media Audit, the parent company of Consumer Research Around Cannabis,
is an international research company serving 80+ local markets in the U.S.
and Canada for more than 20 years. It started gathering data about cannabis
use and attitudes in 2016.

Although the sale of adult recreational cannabis is illegal in Iowa, the
survey found 16.2 percent of all adults age 18+ in Des Moines said they
used or bought cannabis during the past month, or the statistical
equivalent of approximately 140,000 adults.

The smallest percentage in the following table, monthly usage in Des
Moines, is still substantial—and suggests a pent-up market. Unleashing the
recreational cannabis market in Des Moines and all of Iowa would likely
generate jobs and significant taxes for the state—money now escaping across
the borders.

The survey data from Des Moines and 42 other markets was aggregated and
showed 24.1 percent of adults 18+ used or bought cannabis during the past
month. (Local factors affect these percentages and comparisons.)

For 15 years, Jonathan Caulkins, H. Guyford Stever professor of operations
research and public policy at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College,
has been studying cannabis legalization. He is also the author of several
books on the topic and a member of the Commission on the North American
Opioid Crisis.

Caulkins’s research fine-tunes the results of the Des Moines survey from
Consumer Research Around Cannabis.

“From 1992 through 2023, the most recent year for which we have released
data, the trend has been towards an enormous increase in the number of
people who are using cannabis daily or near daily. They account for 80
percent of recreational cannabis sales. They dominate the market,” Caulkins
said.

In states like Iowa that haven’t legalized adult recreational cannabis,
Caulkins expects when they do, the middle of the market will be blue-collar
high-school graduates, adults 25–40 who are employed but not affluent.

He has also seen a gender trend as more states allow the sale of
recreational cannabis.

“As cannabis has become more legal, the male/female use gap has become
noticeably smaller. When it was an illegal action or a risky action, there
was a much bigger gender gap, but that gap is declining. Use by men is
increasing with legalization, use by women is increasing even more,” he
said.

Cannabis consumers in Des Moines also align with the 43-market survey when
comparing gender and income. Millennials at 42.3 percent and Gen Xers at
35.5 percent account for three-quarters of the adult cannabis consumers in
Des Moines who bought or used cannabis during the past month. These
percentages are slightly more than the 43-market survey at 41.5 percent and
28.2 percent, respectively. The 33.8 percent of cannabis consumers in Des
Moines with household incomes of $35,000 to $75,000 is also slightly more
than the 43-market survey at 29.6 percent.

The Consumer Research Around Cannabis data also profiles cannabis consumers
at a more granular level. The “household profile” category shows which
three were the largest purchasers or users of cannabis during the past
year, or 33.8 percent collectively.

- Affluent, no children at home: $75,000+ household income
- Affluent white-collar worker: Family income $100,000+
- Affluent Boomers: $100,000+ household income

Comparing cannabis purchasers and users in Des Moines with the 43-market
survey by their employment status and occupation reveals some contrasts.
The data indicates that many in Des Moines are working and contributing to
the local economy.

Voting is a meaningful measure of civic responsibility. Millennials at 22
percent, Gen Xers at 54.4 percent and Baby Boomers at 12 percent who
purchased or used cannabis during the past month voted in local, state and
national elections, compared to 33 percent, 32.1 percent and 24.6 percent,
respectively, in the 43-market aggregate survey.

This particular data point may have ramifications for future legislative
efforts to legalize adult recreational cannabis sales in Iowa. While the
Iowa Legislature’s majority Republicans have rebuffed Democrats’ proposals
to legalize recreational marijuana, advocates suggest time may be on their
side if an increasing body of citizens support legalization with their
votes.

Marijuana’s Schedule I Status ‘Traps Researchers In A Paradox,’ Federally
Funded Scientists Say

*This story was first published by Iowa Capital Dispatch.*

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Shows—Smashing ‘Lazy Stoner’ Stereotypes appeared first on Marijuana Moment.