Arizona House passes bill to eliminate cocaine sentencing disparity

PHOENIX – The Arizona House unanimously passed a bill last week that would eliminate sentencing disparities between crack and powdered cocaine.

Under current state law, it takes 9 grams of cocaine base and hydrolyzed cocaine to trigger enhanced criminal penalties. However, it takes only 750 milligrams of crack – 12 times less — for the enhanced sentencing to kick in.

HB2720, if passed by the Senate and signed by Gov. Katie Hobbs, would change the crack threshold to 9 grams. The House passed it 59-0 on Thursday.

“For too long, Arizona’s laws have imposed an unjust sentencing disparity on two chemically identical substances,” Rep. Leo Biasiucci, the Republican who sponsored the bill, said in a press release Monday.

Why was bill introduced to address cocaine sentencing disparity?

Many states adapted harsher sentencing for crack decades ago, following changes to federal standards established in the 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act.

Such sentencing disparities came under fire over the years because it disproportionately affected Black Americans.

The federal disparity was eliminated in 2022, and Arizona is one of just six states that still punish crack possession more severely.

“HB2720 ensures our justice system is guided by facts and fairness, not outdated policies from nearly 40 years ago. It’s time for Arizona to align with the federal government and the majority of states that have already fixed this inequity,” Biasiucci said.

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