Marijuana Moment report
California has taken in nearly $4 billion in marijuana tax revenue since the state’s adult-use market launched in 2018, the Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) reported on Thursday. But figures over the past year and a half are “flat,” legislative analysts reported.
For the first quarter of 2022, the state saw about $294 million in cannabis revenue generated from the excise, cultivation and sales tax on marijuana.
While that’s lower than what California collected in the fourth fiscal quarter of 2021, when it received roughly $317 million in cannabis tax dollars, it’s also the case that figures are routinely updated after initial publication due to “amended and late returns and other tax return adjustments,” CDTFA said.
Marijuana tax policy in the Golden State has been a focal point of attention for stakeholders, regulators and even the governor in recent months.
For example, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) unveiled an updated budget proposal earlier this month that calls for the elimination of the state’s marijuana cultivation tax and revised cannabis tax revenue allocations.
The May revised budget would take steps intended to combat the illicit market and make the legal industry more competitive, in large part by zeroing out the cultivation tax that marijuana businesses currently incur.
As the state Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) pointed out in its own update on Thursday, Newsom’s proposal also calls for the establishment of monetary thresholds for cannabis tax-funded programs and setting aside any excess revenue.
With such weak growth, unclear if “excess revenues” contemplated in Gov’s May Revision cannabis proposal will materialize in 2021-22. [2/2]
— California Economy & Taxes (@LAOEconTax) May 26, 2022
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California Marijuana Tax Revenue Nears $4 Billion, But Growth Has Stalled, State Analysts Say
