Colorado Stoners Generate $1 Million in Tax Revenue [View all]

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BY MIKE ADAMS · TUE FEB 04, 2014

After only a month in business, the “Great Colorado Cannabis Experiment” is proving to be a profitable venture for the state. Recent sales records reveal that retail weed slingers were responsible for collecting some $1.24 million in tax revenue in January -- putting the state’s recreational marijuana industry on the fast track to earning over $100 million a year in taxes.

During a recent survey conducted by NBC News, half of Colorado’s licensed recreational marijuana retailers opened up their books and shared tax records for their first 27 days in business. Not only do these documents indicate that pot shops are generating higher revenue levels than expected, but it also points toward a time in the not so distant future when marijuana may generate more tax dollars than alcohol, or even cigarettes.

In 2013, Colorado managed to collect about $40 million in taxes derived from alcohol sales, as well as nearly $32 million from tobacco products. Cigarettes, however, were one of the state’s highest sources of tax income -- producing about $166 million. Yet, marijuana is poised to become the number one contender.

This is promising news for many state funded projects, especially Colorado schools. State law mandates that the first $40 million collected in recreational marijuana tax be applied towards bettering the state’s educational facilities. Additional revenue will be used to improve the conditions of the state’s roads, bridges and parks, according to recent reports.

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http://www.hightimes.com/read/colorado-stoners-generate-1-million-tax-revenue