Nearly 20 years after California jump-started a national dialogue on medicinal cannabis, the Legislature and the Governor have succeeded in negotiating a set of new bills to bring law and order to the Wild West economy of legal cannabis in California.

Should the governor sign his name to the package of bills the Legislature approved last month — AB 266, AB 243 and SB 643 — there will be profound changes in the industry; standardized licensing requirements and processes, tight restrictions on water and pesticide use, consumer safety standards, and public safety regulations that tightly control the distribution of cannabis from where it is grown to where it is sold.

The marijuana debate in Ohio is garnering more attention after Ohio’s Attorney General Mike DeWine’s trip to Colorado.

DeWine said he took a three-day trip to Colorado about two weeks ago to speak with people directly affected by the legalization of marijuana in the state.

DeWine said he spoke with Colorado’s attorney general, the chief of Denver police and several doctors.

DeWine said he doesn’t want the current problems in Colorado to make their way to Ohio.

"The perceived risk is down and the availability of marijuana is dramatically up, and the end result is going to be younger children will be trying marijuana and more children will be using marijuana," DeWine said.

We've been reporting about the marijuana policies of presidential candidates, some of whom would like to turn back the clock on legal recreational sales in Colorado and a handful of other states.

But there are plenty of reasons to let Colorado's experiment go forward.

Millions of them, in fact.

In the three years since Colorado legalized recreational marijuana, the state has seen an economic boom, with marijuana sales bringing in $700 million in 2014 and the state expecting to collect $94 million in tax revenue from marijuana sales in 2016.

While the legalization of marijuana has had a positive impact on the state’s economy, the state’s largest city is facing a housing crisis, as steeply rising home prices are pricing out much of the city’s population.

The New Republic does a deep dive into the issue and its causes, which is more than just people moving to the state to express their freedom.

From the New Republic:

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)– Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine has returned to the state after a recent business trip to Colorado.  DeWine says he went to Colorado to learn about the consequences of marijuana legalization and how to implement the law if amendment three passes.

DeWine says law enforcement officers, medical professionals, and educators all told him the same thing.  He says, “The message was really clear. And that message was you guys are crazy if you bring this to Ohio. You guys are just crazy.”

August was a record-breaking month for the marijuana industry in Colorado. It was the first time sales broke $100 million in one month.

In August, $59.2 million was made from recreational sales and $41.4 million was made from medical marijuana, according to sales data from the Colorado Department of Revenue.

The state collected $13 million in taxes, licenses and fees on marijuana in August, 70 percent more than August 2014.

Click here to see tax data from the Colorado Department of Revenue.

It’s a question worth either $66 million or about $7, depending on the way you look at it: Should the state be allowed to keep marijuana taxes?

Proposition BB, the only statewide ballot initiative to be decided Nov. 3, asks voters to let the state keep the $66 million in marijuana taxes. According to the state, it would spend about $40 million of that on school construction. Another $12 million would go to various social programs, including marijuana education and prevention, bullying and drop-out prevention programs and youth mentoring services.

DENVER - People spent more than $100 million dollars on marijuana in one month in Colorado.

That's a new record high. And if the trend continues, sales will set another new record next month, and the month after that, and on and on.

In August, recreational marijuana sales totaled $59.2 million and medical marijuana sales came in at $41.4 million, according to sales data from the Colorado Department of Revenue.

Colorado collected more than $13 million total in taxes, licenses and fees on marijuana in August 2015. That's up 70 percent from August 2014.

The Colorado Springs City Council is pushing to enact a six-month moratorium on new marijuana consumption clubs, and will issue a final vote on Tuesday.

Amendment 64, which state voters passed in November 2012, legalized recreational marijuana use and sales. Although Colorado Springs voters approved Amendment 64 by 4,947 votes, the City Council voted 5-4 in 2013 to ban the sale of recreational marijuana in the city.

On Sept. 22, the City Council voted 8-1 to impose the moratorium on cannabis social clubs, which allow customers to use marijuana on the premises - similar to drinking alcohol at a bar. Councilwoman Helen Collins cast the dissenting vote.

DENVER -- The Shark Tank for Ganjapreneurs is rolling in Denver this weekend, giving contestants a chance to pitch cannabis ideas to accredited investors for a chance to win more than $10 million in investment capital.

“What a chance this is for anyone with an idea to take non-THC cannabis products to the next level,” said Wendy Robbins one of the co-inventor of the show. We have contestants who have come from all over the world to try out… one is only 10 years old!”

Then there is the man from Key West, Florida who has taken Henry Ford’s idea for a hemp car that runs on plant material and made the Renewal Sports Car.

“This car will improve our carbon footprint for sure,” said Bruce Dietzen, who drove his car to Mile High from Margaritaville. Renewsportcars.com