Nevada’s marijuana tax revenue in September fell just short of the single-month record set in August.
Nevada closed out the first quarter of the fiscal year with another strong month of marijuana sales. New data shows that the state collected more than $7 million in tax revenue from legal marijuana from its September sales.
According to the Nevada Department of Taxation, the state brought in more than $7.49 million in September. That revenue comes from a 15 percent wholesale tax on medical and recreational marijuana that’s paid by cultivation and production facilities, plus a 10 percent excise tax on recreational sales.
The month’s taxable sales for both medical and adult use marijuana totaled $49.43 million. The state collected $3.34 million from the wholesale tax and just over $4.15 million from the excise tax.
Nevada’s marijuana tax revenue for September is slightly down from the $8.1 million collected in August and the $7.9 million generated in July. It tops the $7.12 million the state collected from marijuana in June.
“We’re seeing some small up and down fluctuations in revenue from month to month, but the overall trend is one of substantial growth over last year,” said Bill Anderson, executive director of the Nevada Department of Taxation, according to the Las Vegas Sun.
Year-to-date marijuana tax collections for the Silver State have now reached nearly $24 million, a 77 percent year-over-year increase. The wholesale marijuana tax accounts for nearly $11 million of that amount, more than double the total for the same period last year. The excise marijuana tax brought in $24.48 million.
Nevada’s Marijuana Tax Revenue
Since retail recreational marijuana sales launched July 1, 2017, Nevada’s marijuana tax revenue has continued to beat projections. The governor’s office projected that marijuana sales would garner $5 million a month from marijuana wholesale and excise taxes from July 2017 to July 2019, for a total of $120 million. Actual tax collections are on pace to be 40 percent higher.
Through the first quarter of the fiscal year, Nevada’s marijuana industry saw taxable medical and recreational sales of $146.7 million. About 80 percent were made in Clark County. Washoe County accounted for 16 percent of sales.
The state projects $370 million in recreational marijuana sales alone for fiscal year 2019, which would mean $69.4 million in tax revenue for the state.
Under Nevada law, revenue from the excise tax goes to the Nevada Rainy Day Fund. Revenue from the wholesale marijuana tax goes to fund state and local government regulation of the industry. Any leftover goes to the Distributive School Account.
More on Marijuana in Nevada
Nevada is one of ten U.S. states with legal recreational marijuana. Voters in 2016 approved a marijuana measure that allows adults 21 and older to legally purchase and possess up to 1 ounce of marijuana. Homeowners are also allowed to grow up to six plants per person, up to 12 plants per household, for personal use.
Medical marijuana has been legal in Nevada since 2000. The state’s program allows qualified patients with written documentation from a doctor to possess up to 2 ½ ounces of usable marijuana and to cultivate up to 12 mature plants.
You can learn even more about the cannabis laws in Nevada and throughout the rest of the United States through our education page.
