New Analysis Shows Tax Revenue From Cannabis In The Billions

States that have legalized adult-use marijuana sales have seen billions of dollars in fresh tax revenue from cannabis, according to a new study.

The recently published research, which comes courtesy of the Marijuana Policy Project, found that, as of this month, “states reported a combined total of $7.9 billion in tax revenue from legal, adult-use marijuana sales,” while “cities and towns have also generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in new revenue from local adult-use cannabis taxes.”

That reported figure includes the states of Colorado and Washington, where voters passed legalization measures in 2012 and where sales began in 2014.

In Colorado, according to the study, there is a 15 percent tax on wholesale and a 15 percent tax rate on special retail (neither of which apply to sales of medical cannabis in the state). Since 2014, Colorado’s estimated tax revenue from cannabis sales is $1,557,878,973, with “$404.5 million of the total revenue generated from cannabis taxes has been dedicated to improving Colorado’s public school system.” The estimated tax revenue does not include “local sales tax revenues, which have been significant,” according to the study. In Denver, for example, $210.6 million in local tax revenue has been generated as of last month.
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