Marijuana revenue depends on a value judgment: What tax burden is appropriate?
Some of my friends would tax marijuana like milk, on principle. Some would exempt it, and subsidize it. Some would tax the heck out of it. Others would try to raise only enough to match current drug harm costs; others would add revenue for Victims of the Drug War. Let the philosophers and the interest groups sort that out.
That’s a draft. Comments welcomed.
| Cannabis weight-based tax in grams (local currency) | ||||||
| Alaska | California | Colorado | Maine | Nevada | Canada | |
| Bud/flower | $1.76 | $0.34 | $0.33 | $0.74 | $0.71 | $1 |
| Leaves/trim | $0.53 | $0.10 | $0.10 | $0.21 | $0.17 | $0.25 |
| Fresh/Wet whole plant | $0.05 | $0.06 | $0.09 | |||
| Small bud (NV); Abnormal & immature bud (AK) | $0.88 | $0.56 | ||||
| Bud for extraction | $0.20 | $0.18 | ||||
| Trim for extraction | $0.07 | $0.17 |
| Alaska | California | Colorado | Maine | Nevada | Canada | |
| Bud/flower | $50/oz. | $9.65/oz. | $150/lb. | $335/lb. | $321.75/lb. | $1/gram |
| Leaves/trim | $15/oz | $2.87/oz. | $45/lb. | $94/lb. | $76.95/lb. | $0.25/gram |
| Fresh/Wet whole plant | $1.35/oz. | $26.4/lb. | $41.25/lb. | |||
| Small bud (NV); Abnormal & immature bud (AK) | $25/oz. | $254.4/lb. | ||||
| Bud for extraction | $89.85/lb. | $82.65/lb. | ||||
| Trim for extraction | $30.3/lb. | $76.65/lb. |
For citations to state authorities, https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/tax/marijuana-AMR and https://newrevenue.org/2020/08/01/cannabis-weight-tax-rates-bud-and-trim-u-s-and-canada/#more-6492
I’m hoping a Research Assistant will materialize to convert rates to gram equivalents.
The Center for New Revenue 