п»їAsk the I-Team: Where does the money from Maine marijuana sales go?
Recreational marijuana stores opened in Maine back in 2020 and sales have steadily climbed ever since.
David asked the CBS13 I-Team:
“I would like to know about revenue from marijuana since its legalization in the state. How much in taxes and where did it go?”
Data from the state’s Office of Cannabis Policy show nearly $137 million in adult-use marijuana has been sold since stores first opened.
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Consumers pay a 10 percent sales tax when they buy product, which, based on sales, would amount to about $13.7 million.
There’s also a 10 percent excise tax at the cultivation level adding up to about 20 percent total in taxes.
Twelve percent of that goes to the Adult Use Marijuana Public Health and Safety Fund and the municipal opt-in fund.
The rest goes to the state’s general fund.
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For example, in 2021 the first full year of sales, an annual report to the Maine Legislature shows nearly $5 million in excise tax and $7.4 million in sales tax.
So far, sales in 2022 are on pace to top last year’s nearly $82 million.
