In these states, arrest has been replaced with a traffic-ticket type of citation, and a small fine is the sole allowable penalty. About 30 states include some provision for conditional discharge of first offenders, and about a dozen of them provide for all records of the offense to be expunged. State penalties for second-offense possession and for selling marijuana are extremely variable. Federal prohibition of small-scale possession is virtually unenforced. In terms of its effects from a law enforcement point of view, the present official federal policy of complete prohibition does not differ in fact from a policy of prohibition of supply only.
Complete prohibition is the federal law, but partial prohibition is the practice.
However, the law, even though partly unenforced, has probably had a restraining influence on the willingness of states to adopt policies of less than complete prohibition. Regulation means not only eliminating penalties for use but also allowing controlled production and distribution. For example, a policy of complete prohibition necessitates decisions about the resources to be devoted to enforcement, the appropriate penalties to be imposed for violations, and whether marijuana should be made available for any medical uses. Under a policy of prohibition of supply only, decisions must still be made about penalties and permitted medical uses. The variety of choices within each of the broad policy options suggests that none can be characterized in a monolithic way.