A divided Tennessee Supreme Court today found that Tennessee's law imposing a tax on controlled substances violates the state's constitution.

The opinion of the three judges in the majority, available here, upheld rulings by the two lower courts that had struck down a 2005 statute meant to impose a tax on illegal drug deals.

The court ruled that the current language of the law could not be construed to be a tax on “merchants, peddlers, and privileges,” which are the only things the state is allowed to tax under the Tennessee constitution.

Dissenting from the majority opinion, Justice Bill Koch wrote that "the illegal drug trade is a hydra-headed monster that preys on our society," requiring creative countermeasures.

"By deciding that the Unauthorized Substances Tax is facially unconstitutional," Koch argued, "the Court has gone farther than removing diseased statutory tissue (the application of the tax to persons who are not merchants or peddlers). It has removed healthy statutory tissue (the application of the tax to persons who are merchants and peddlers) as well."

The dissent, with which Koch said Justice Cornelia Clark agreed, is available at this link.

The court provided background and context on the decision in a press release issued this afternoon.