share this story

Smoke Signal e-Newsletter

Submit this story     

After California, Colorado is the state with the most extensive medical marijuana system. The Mile High state has raked in over $7 million in taxes and fees from medical cannabis applications that were due by August 1st.

One of the major arguments by those against CA Prop 19 is that it won’t bring any money to the state. We’ve pointed out the fallacy of that argument time and again on this site, but it bears repeating. When has a government not made any money by taxing something? Colorado is much smaller than California, and it’s 700 dispensaries applications are about the same number of dispensaries that used to be in Los Angeles alone. Are we supposed to believe that L.A. wouldn’t have been able to raise $7 million from it’s dispensaries had they left them open to operate? Does the city not need $7 million?

And this is just for medical marijuana. If Prop 19 passes, recreational users in California will be paying taxes on the marijuana they buy as well, not to mention the application fees from all the new businesses that will open. And I would dare say that recreational users far outnumber medical users in CA. We are talking hundreds of millions of dollars for the state.

Money doesn’t lie. If you follow it, most of the time you will find the right path.

- Joe Klare