Why are Teens Smoking Less Weed? (Hint: It’s Not the Law)

Minnesota’s Department of Health just released the latest results of its triennial Minnesota Student Survey, and the headline reads like a prohibitionist’s nightmare: there has been a 57.7 percent statewide drop in self-reported past-year cannabis use from 2013 to 2025 among 8th, 9th, and 11th graders combined. “96 percent of students report not having used cannabis in the last month,” the department said in its release. Gov. Tim Walz legalized adult-use cannabis in 2023, making this the first survey cycle conducted since the state ended prohibition.