Credit Hour

Johnson Discusses Amendment A Marijuana Reform on Credit Hour VERMILLION, S.D. – Brendan Johnson, B.S. ’98, lead counsel for Amendment A discussed the implications of marijuana reform on the podcast Credit Hour.“What is not up for compromise is the fact that [marijuana] is decriminalized,” Johnson said. “The people have spoken very clearly on that.”Johnson served as lead counsel for Amendment A. He is a former U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota and practices at Robins Kaplan in Sioux Falls.Johnson said the law will go into effect in July of 2021. Johnson said taxes on marijuana will be capped at 15 percent split between the general budget and education. He also said it may have benefits for tribal communities and from a social justice standpoint.“Some of the biggest benefits are from a social justice perspective. We lock up too many people in our country. We lock up too many people in South Dakota,” Johnson said citing statistics that marijuan