LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — The Nevada Dispensary Association said the state’s cannabis industry contributed more than $100 million in taxes and fees.
According to the association, dispensaries, cultivators, laboratories and producers paying more than $109 million, also in taxes and fees, during fiscal year 2019.
Cannabis sales were also up from $529 million in fiscal year 2018, to about $639 million during fiscal year 2019.
NDA said $99.18 million were paid in taxes this year compared to last year’s amount of $74.7 million. How much of that amount went towards the state’s education budget was not immediately available.
“While these sales figures are strong, we should not take them for granted,” said Riana Durrett of the NDA. “The number one goal is to ensure public safety and second is the stability of the industry. Millions more in taxes and fees are paid at nearly every level of government including county and local. Significant changes in the market or regulatory framework could impact tax collection, especially given competition from the illegal market. The illegal market continues to deprive the state of funds that could be going to education.”
Changes to the law during the 2019 Nevada Legislative Session mandates that 100 percent of taxes go to education in future years, NDA said in a statement. For the next two years, the state projects more than $100 million per year in tax collections.
