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  3. How Would Legalized Marijuana Affect the TASC Diversion Program?

How Would Legalized Marijuana Affect the TASC Diversion Program?

Sep 9, 2016 | Marijuana

In Arizona (and in some other states), those charged with relatively minor offenses may have the opportunity to participate in a diversion program that my offer an alternative to traditional prosecution, sentencing and jail time. One such program, which operates largely in Arizona, is called TASC, which is an acronym for Treatment Assessment Screening Center. Many of those who participate are there because of low-level drug crimes, including possession of marijuana. With legalization on the ballot, we wonder what the impact will be on TASC should recreational use of marijuana be approved by the Arizona voters.

In Maricopa County, the program is often used in dealing with felony marijuana possession, as well as possession charges involving narcotic drugs and dangerous drugs. Arizona has some of the strictest drug laws in the country, particularly when it comes to drug possession, including marijuana. Possession can generally can be charged as a felony, although in most cases a judge has discretion to classify it as a class 1 misdemeanor. The TASC program is open to some, but not all, of those charged with drug possession. Issues such as prior criminal history and prior TASC history can affect a person’s eligibility.

What happens with TASC diversion is that if someone is deemed eligible for the program, a defendant will be required to participate in the program anywhere from one to two years. It is a “deferred prosecution” program, which means that your case will not move forward as long as you continue to fulfill the requirements of the program. This could involve a number of different things, including:

  • Attendance at meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous;
  • Counseling; attendance at a drug abuse seminar;
  • Submitting to urine testing; and
  • Reporting in on a regular basis.

In addition, those participating in TASC are responsible for all fees associated with the program. Those costs could be substantial. And it is the payment of those costs, according to TASC, which fully funds its operations in Maricopa County.

If pot becomes legal, the financial impact on TASC, according to the figures we’ve seen, would be dramatic. The company currently has 17 offices in Arizona and Utah (most of them in Arizona), including 3 in Phoenix. Last year, almost 2,600 people in Maricopa County completed TASC. About 77% of them were marijuana offenders. While some of the offenses would remain if the ballot measure passes, it is clear that most of the 77% would disappear. If you assume that three-quarters of the marijuana participants would no longer be in the criminal justice system, TASC would lose about 1,500 offenders. At an average fee of $1,300, they’d be out close to $2 million. That’s in just one county! For a non-profit, 501(c)(3) corporation whose annual income of about $18 million comes largely from program participants, the overall impact would be enormous.

We’ll have to wait and see, assuming marijuana legalization goes forward, how TASC plans to deal with the issue. In the meantime, some have accused the company of “profiteering” off petty offenses that many believe should not be crimes in the first place. We know, it’s a “non-profit.” But take a look at the executive salaries. For period 2012 through 2014, the company’s Form 990 shows total compensation for the CEO of more than $1,375,000, or an average of almost $460,000 annually!

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