Colorado expects recreational and medical marijuana sales to reach at least $900 million during the state’s next fiscal year, according to an extrapolation of tax revenue estimates.
The figure is tied to a budget proposal by Gov. John Hickenlooper this week estimating that the state will collect nearly $80 million in sales taxes from recreational shops and medical marijuana dispensaries from July of this year through June 2015.
Based on estimates in the proposal, recreational stores would generate between $550 million-$600 million in sales and MMJ dispensaries would bring in around $345 million in revenues during that period. Colorado collects a 12.9% tax on recreational sales and a 2.9% tax on medical marijuana sales.
The state’s estimates offer yet another indication that Colorado’s recreational marijuana market is burgeoning. Many estimates now signal that the market could approach $1 billion sooner rather than later.
Colorado is clearly anticipating a financial windfall.
Aside from the $80 million in sales taxes, the governor’s office expects the state will collect another $46 million in recreational cannabis excise taxes (assessed when marijuana is transferred from a cultivation site to a retail store) and another $8 million in other medical and retail fees, including applications and licenses. The state’s expected total haul in its next fiscal year: $134 million.
