Pubdate: Thu, 13 Nov 2014
Source: Westword (Denver, CO)
Copyright: 2014 Village Voice Media
Contact: http://www.westword.com/feedback/EmailAnEmployee?department=letters
Website: http://www.westword.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1616
Author: William Breathes

HOW ARE POT TAX REVENUES BEING USED?

Dear Stoner: How are recreational marijuana tax revenues being 
distributed within the state? Is this information made available to 
the public? I think if people see that the tax revenues are being 
used to help schools, fix the terrible roads and help the homeless, 
opinions may be changed.

Money Bags of Weed

Dear MBW: Basically, there are two sources of revenue from 
recreational marijuana. The excise tax on wholesale revenue is what 
goes toward funding school construction. Because recreational pot 
shops were forced to grow their own supply between January and 
October, those figures have been low: only $6.8 million as of August, 
when the state's latest tax data was released. The grow-your-own rule 
is over, though, so expect the excise-tax figures to rise as 
freestanding grow operations begin selling wholesale product to the shops.

The second tax-revenue source is the sales tax on recreational pot. 
We agree: It would be nice if the revenue went to fixing our 
pothole-filled roadways or to help the homeless, but that's not what 
voters approved when they voted for Amendment 64, which specifically 
called for a 10 percent sales tax on recreational pot to "fund the 
enforcement of regulations on the retail marijuana industry and other 
costs related to the implementation of the use and regulation of 
retail marijuana as approved by the voters."

That's right: We legalized limited amounts of pot to prevent wasting 
police budgets on cannabis - but the cops are getting more money. As 
of August, the total sales tax collected since the start of 
recreational sales January 1 was just over $22 million. The state 
Marijuana Cash Fund also imposes a 2.9 percent sales tax on medical 
marijuana; the 2015-'16 budget proposed by Governor John Hickenlooper 
last week showed an estimated $33.6 million in that cash fund, and 
most of it will go to keeping pot users in check in one way or another.

The good news is that the state is going to collect far more than it 
has budgeted for, and some of that money could be coming back to you 
in the form of tax credits or sales-tax refunds in 2016. That's 
because the state underestimated the amount that would be collected 
in its initial projections, and thanks to TABOR, about $30.5 million 
from marijuana tax collections over what was authorized by Amendment 
64 will either go back to voters - or voters will have to approve 
letting the state keep it. Hickenlooper has tossed this decision to 
the Colorado Legislature, which will have to figure out what to do in 
the coming session. For more on this, go to the Latest Word blog.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom