Article on how sales of legal pot in Cal are not meeting exceptions, and that they are only collecting about 1/2 the taxes they thought. The problem? Taxes are too high, and people just buy it from their old connection in the black market.
“The state’s top marijuana regulator, Lori Ajax, has said the state intends to get more businesses licensed and operating in 2019, while cracking down on rogue operators who continue to proliferate across the state.”
Tax evasion is a victimless crime, so what the problem?
Here in Oregon tax collecting on weed is going gangbusters. The main problem is we are growing way too much weed and the price of pot is plummeting.
“July saw a record haul in Salem, with more than $8.7 million in state cannabis taxes collected, according to Department of Revenue data released Monday. That’s nearly 10 percent more than the previous high of $8 million, set in January, and a 69 percent increase over the $5.1 million collected in July 2017.”
Saying tax evasion is a victim-less crime is like saying omission of the truth is not lying.
Pay your taxes people!
Anyway, it takes a while to get the bureaucracy in place to collect the taxes. We just passed the legalization in Michigan, and won’t have shops up and running until 2020.
CO is increasing its pot profits year after year. For the last 3 years in a row, CO has made OVER A BILLION DOLLARS from pot taxes. That’s a billion dollars EACH YEAR the state didn’t have before.
CA is expecting close to $400 million by summer. That’s $400 MILLION they did not have before.
Yeah I had my dates wrong (I have a medical card so wasn’t thinking about recreational). We legalized in 2012 but it didn’t start till 2014. They recently (like last month) arrested a bunch of people for doing that, so they’ve been exporting. I don’t see the black market as being much of a force in state, but of course there will always be some who’d rather pay cheaper prices. Me, I like to know what I’m getting and I think most people do.
