Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, wants a better approach to marijuana in Iowa.

"The question to Iowans is, 'Is prohibition working?'" he said.

"When we know that despite the best efforts of the criminal justice system, and the hundreds of millions of dollars we spend a year, on police and courts and jails and prisons, Iowans are not significantly safer or healthier."

Bolkcom is drafting a bill to legalize recreational marijuana in the state of Iowa, which proposes regulating it like alcohol. Ten states now regulate marijuana like alcohol.

Among his top reasons for legalization is the disproportionate rate at which people of color are incarcerated for marijuana charges. Although black and white Iowans have similar rates of marijuana use, he said black Iowans are four times more likely to be prosecuted.

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In addition, multiple states surrounding Iowa are moving toward legalization. In November, Michigan voters approved a legal marijuana program, while the governors of Illinois and Minnesota expressed interest in similar proposals.

"It's pretty clear Illinois is going to regulate marijuana like alcohol before Iowa does," Bolkcom said. "There's no question that there would be Iowans crossing the river to buy retail marijuana products."

In addition, Iowa City and other university towns like Ames and Cedar Falls, all have large out-of-state student populations, with many students hailing from the Land of Lincoln.

"There's going to be students on our campuses, that are probably going to bring those products back to campus I would guess," he said. "And that's going to create a problem for the local community, local law enforcement."

More than 30,000 students attend the University of Iowa, making up one-third of the city's population.

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According to the 2017 university's registrar, more than 6,117 students enrolled from Illinois, 171 students are from Michigan and 759 students hail from Minnesota. That means about 7,000 students, just under one-third of the student population, could soon be purchasing and using marijuana legally in their home states if legalization measures go forward.

At the same time, annual reports from the Iowa City Police Department show that the number of drug offense arrests are gradually decreasing.

As for the racial disparity in Iowa's incarceration rate, Iowa City and University Heights police departments are working toward bringing down disproportionate contact.

READ: University Heights makes history withfirst-in-the-state ban on profiling by police

Johnson County Attorney Janet Lyness said she's seen a decrease in marijuana offense prosecutions. And while she wasn't prepared to say she opposes decriminalization, she wants to see more studies on how it affects public safety.

"If we decriminalize marijuana, I'm still concerned how it impairs the ability to drive," she said.

Johnson County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek said although he supports expanding the strict medical marijuana program, recreational marijuana is different.

"I'm not a proponent for full legalization," he said, adding that he does think some marijuana charges should be reduced to lower-level misdemeanors.

Theft, although a completely different crime, he said, starts with a low-level offense of a simple misdemeanor and increases with severity. Marijuana charges, however, start with a serious misdemeanor level offense regardless of the extent of the marijuana crime.

To understand the costs of disproportionate contact and marijuana-related charges locally, Bolkcom is compiling the cost of someone going through the legal system for marijuana charges in Johnson County.

"There's a big cost locally," he said, explaining that most people convicted of marijuana charges are put on probation, a large group are sent to county jail and a small number go to prison.

At the state level, he said there are about 5,000 marijuana-related convictions for which the state spends about $12 million processing.

Bolkcom said folks getting convicted in Iowa for having marijuana they purchased in a neighboring state where it's legal is costly, creates criminal records and barriers for employment.

"People should be concerned about this," he said.

Editor's note: This story was updated with information from the Johnson County Attorney and Johnson County Sheriff on Thursday at noon.

Reach Hillary Ojeda at 319-339-7345, hojeda@press-citizen.com or follow her on Twitter at @hillarymojeda.